South Africa T20 League

25th Match: DSG vs SEC

Preview

DSG vs SEC will lock horns for the 25th match of the South Africa T20 League 2023. The match will be played at The Kingsmead Cricket Ground, Durban on Friday, 03 February at 09:00 PM IST. A cracker of battle awaits between the 2nd-placed Sunrisers and the 6th-placed Durban. SEC currently has 17 points in the 8 matches that the side has played, including 4 wins and 4 losses. Whereas, DSG has 12 points in the 8 matches that the side has played, including 3 wins and 5 losses. 

Durban is stranded at the bottom of the table with just 12 points and a net run rate of -1.355. The side has just two games left this season and has virtually no hope of making it to the semi-finals now. The Durban side, on the other hand, would like to end the season on a high note. DSG's next clash is against SEC who is 2nd on the table with 17 points and a net run rate of +0.508. SEC would want to win this match to get closer to the semi-final qualification.

DSG is coming off a 5-wicket win against MICT. After keeping MI to 165-5 at Kingsmead, they chased down the target with one ball to spare. Skipper and left-handed batter Quinton de Kock top-scored with a breezy 63 off 41 balls, while Matthew Breetzke (48* off 39 balls at a strike rate of 143.39) provided solid support. 

The left-handed batter De Kock (228 runs in 8 matches) and Heinrich Klaasen (259 runs from 8 matches at a strike rate of 146.32) are leading the batting charts for DSG this season and will be crucial for them in the last two matches. The other batters haven’t clicked for the team this season, and the onus will again be on these two. 

The all-rounder Pretorius has led Durban’s bowling this season, taking 8 wickets in 5 innings at an economy of 10, along with left-arm pacer Reece Topley, who has 7 wickets in 6 innings at an economy rate of 8.20. The left-arm spinner Maharaj has taken just 4 wickets this season, but the left-arm spinner has mostly kept things tight in the middle overs, going at an economy of 7.86.

SEC may be in second position on the points table, but they have 17 points in their bag and can’t afford any more slip-ups because PR and JSK are breathing down their necks with 17 and 16 points, respectively.

They are coming off a 5-wicket loss to PR and would be hoping to put up a much better performance in this game. The skipper of the side Markram is their leading run-getter this season with 200 runs in 8 innings at a strike rate of 117.64. JJ Smuts (193 runs in 6 innings at 126.97) is the other most consistent batter on the team. Smuts also top-scored with a knock of 65 off 49 balls in the previous game against PR.

Roelof van der Merwe has been the star of SEC's bowling unit this season, picking up 14 wickets in just 6 innings at an excellent economy of 4.73. He keeps things tight with probing lines and lengths and doesn’t allow opposition batters to break through in the middle overs. The fast gun bowler Sisanda Magala has done a superb job as well, taking 9 wickets in 8 innings at an economy of 8.53.

Match Details

Match: DSG vs SEC, 25th Match, South Africa T20 League

Date: Friday, February 03, 2023

Time: 09:00 PM

Venue: Kingsmead Cricket Ground, Durban, South Africa

Pitch & Weather Report

This venue in Durban usually offers plenty of help to seamers. They will get bounce and movement throughout. However, the ball also comes on nicely to the bat once the batter gets their eye in.

The average score batting first at this pitch is 151. The highest total posted at the venue is 216/4 by DSG, which happened this year. Scores between 150 to 189 have been posted 34 times here in 70 T20 matches. The team batting first here should look to set a target of around 175 runs. The last two matches played at Kingsmead have both been won by the team chasing. This suggests that batting in the second half is getting easier. The team winning the toss is likely to field first.

The maximum temperature will remain at 26°C, with a low of 21°C with 68% humidity, and a light wind speed of 11 Km/hr for the 25th SA T20 match on Feb 03 between DSG vs SEC. Some rain is expected in Kingsmead on the morning of the match day, with a 77% chance of precipitation.

DSG vs SEC Squads

DSG: Quinton de Kock (c & wk), Kyle Mayers, Matthew Breetzke, Wiaan Mulder, Heinrich Klaasen, Jason Holder, Dwaine JSKetorius, Keemo Paul, Keshav Maharaj, JSKenelan Subrayen, Akila Dananjaya, Hardus Viljoen, Simon Harmer, Christiaan Jonker, Junior Dala, Dilshan Madushanka, Reece Topley, Johnson Charles

SEC: Sarel Erwee, Adam Rossington (wk), JJ Smuts, Jordan Cox, Aiden Markram (c), Tristan Stubbs, Roelof van der Merwe, Marco Jansen, James Fuller, Sisanda Magala, Ottniel Baartman, Junaid Dawood, Jordan Hermann, Mason Crane, Tom Abell, Ayabulela Gqamane, Brydon Carse, Marques Ackerman

DSG vs SEC: Probable XIs

DSG: Ben McDermott, Quinton de Kock (c), Matthew Breetzke, Wiaan Mulder, Heinrich Klaasen (wk), Dwaine Pretorius, David Willey, Keemo Paul, Simon Harmer, Keshav Maharaj, Reece Topley

SEC: Adam Rossington (wk), Jordan Hermann, Aiden Markram (c), Tristan Stubbs, Sarel Erwee, JJ Smuts, Marco Jansen, James Fuller, Roelof van der Merwe, Brydon Carse, Sisanda Magala

Match Prediction

Both DSG & SEC are coming here after a week’s gap, and they may not carry the winning momentum from their last SA20 matches. This will be the last game that DSG will be playing at home this season. They have played 4 matches here and won 2, so they would be hoping to finish on a high. However, that won't be easy as SEC has a much more balanced outfit. They bat deep and have a bowling unit that's doing a terrific job of keeping the opposition batters in check. DSG's best chance is if either De Kock or Klaasen scores big in this game. Overall, though, the SEC look to be the much stronger team and should come out on top.

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