Though they have already qualified for the SA20 play-offs, all-rounder Senuran Muthusamy says Sunrisers Eastern Cape are not looking too far ahead as they gear up for a crunch game against MI Cape Town at Newlands today (5.30pm start).
The Sunrisers beat Joburg Super Kings by 61 runs in Gqeberha on Wednesday, becoming the first team this season to progress to the knockout stages of the popular T20 competition.
The two-time former champions were still aiming to finish among the top two in the standings, however, in an attempt to bypass the eliminator clash and go straight through to the qualifier play-offs.
“It’s just about making sure we’re up for it at the business end and we’ll take each game as it comes,” said Muthusamy, who took 3/26 to play a key role in the Sunrisers attack against the Super Kings.
“The most important game is on Friday (today), so we’re planning and preparing for that and we’re looking forward to it.”
First checkpoint reached
While they still had work to do to reclaim the trophy, after being defeated by MI Cape Town in last year’s final, Muthusamy said the Eastern Cape side were relieved to reach the knockout stages with two games to spare.
They booked their place in the play-offs for the fourth year in succession after winning four of their eight fixtures thus far (two of their games were rained out).
“It’s fantastic. The first checkpoint is complete,” Muthusamy said.
“It’s been a bit stop-start with the weather and the rain delays… and we’ve played here and not played there, but I think generally we’ve played pretty good, consistent cricket throughout the tournament so far.”
Must-win game for MICT
Rooted to the bottom of the SA20 table, with two games left in the round-robin stage, defending champions MI Cape Town needed to win today’s game against the Sunrisers to keep their play-off hopes alive.
After today’s match, MICT and the Sunrisers were set to clash again in the return fixture in Gqeberha on Sunday, and MICT top-order batter Reeza Hendricks admitted they needed to be at their best for the rest of the week.
“There’s still a lot to play for in these two games, so hopefully we can put it together,” Hendricks said.
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