BETWAY SA20 FAST BOWLERS ENJOY AN ACTION-PACKED DAY AT CENTURION

Centurion proved to be a haven for Betway SA20 fast bowlers on the second day of the first Test between South Africa and the West Indies.

16 wickets fell on an eventful day with 15 claimed by pacemen that participated in the recent Betway SA20.

Joburg Super Kings’ Alzarri Joseph set the day in motion by picking up two wickets in the morning session to bring South Africa’s innings to a close. The two dismissals allowed Joseph to pick up his maiden five-wicket haul in his Test career as he finished with figures of 5/81.

The time spent on the Highveld with the Super Kings during the Betway SA20 certainly helped the lanky paceman to adjust to the conditions quicker than the rest of his Windies’ teammates.

Returning to his home ground, Pretoria Capitals fast bowler Anrich Nortje, however, utilised his vast knowledge of the local surface to better Joseph’s haul.

Nortje steamed in during the final session to rip through the Windies batting line-up to finish with 5/36 as the tourists collapsed to 212 all out.

“Things happen quickly at Centurion. We know the conditions quite well. We know what is expected most of the time and we try to use that to our advantage,” Nortje said.

“Things happen quickly over here. It is special when we get an opportunity to take a ‘fiver’ and get those milestones.”

Nortje received solid support from MI Cape Town’s Kagiso Rabada (2/21), Sunrisers Eastern Cape’s Marco Jansen (1/24) and Joburg Super Kings’ Gerald Coetzee (2/45).

It was extra special for Coetzee, who was playing in his first Test match for the Proteas.

“He deserves it,” Nortje said. “He has been bowling with high pace domestically.”

“I was really happy for him when he took his first wicket. We could all see the celebration and how much it means to him. I am sure it’s going to be a long career for him going forward.”

The action was not over yet, though, with the Windies roaring back in the last hour by picking up four South African wickets, with Joseph adding a further two to his tally while Durban’s Super Giants all-rounder Jason Holder also bagged a further one.