Abell, bowlers enable SEC's first win of season

Defending champions Sunrisers Eastern Cape put an end to their woeful start to the season with a thumping 58-run victory over Durban Super Giants in Durban. Tom Abell's brisk half-century laid the foundation before the bowling triumvirate of Liam Dawson, Richard Gleeson and Ottneil Baartman picked two wickets each to deny the hosts in chase.

Aiden Markram decided to bat first on a 'pretty dry surface' but it came with a bit of slugglishness. Zak Crawley and Abell got their side going in the first half of the innings. Noor Ahmad rattled the batting side with three wickets in two overs, dismissing Crawley and Aiden Markram, and then Jordan Hermann. Abell pushed on, finding an able ally in Marco Jansen as they added 54 crucial runs for the fifth wicket off just 38 deliveries.

Noor picked his fourth wicket of the evening when he dismissed Abell for 57 in the 18th over, but as many as 71 runs came in the last six overs. They took the Eastern Cape to 165/5, a total that proved to be more than sufficient for their first victory.

Matthew Breetzke and Bryce Parsons gave Durban a solid start to chase but were undone by a bit of hesitation on a run and a good throw from Markram that caught Parsons short of his crease. Kane Williamson fell for three in Liam Dawson's first over, giving the bowler a return catch. Dawson struck again in his next over, trapping Breetzke leg before to leave the chasers head to the halfway mark at 54/3.

Durban managed to add 50 runs in the next five overs but for the loss of two further wickets – of Heinrich Klaasen and Quinton de Kock. They needed the kind of late flourish that the Eastern Cape enjoyed but it was not to be as wickets tumbled quickly at the death. Jansen dismissed Jamie Smith and then Gleeson picked two in a three-wicket over that left Eastern Cape on the brink. Baartman finished the job by cleaning up Keshav Maharaj on the first ball of the 19th over.

Brief Scores:
Sunrisers Eastern Cape 165/5 in 20 overs (Tom Abell 57, Marco Jansen 36*)
Durban Super Giants 107 in 18.1 overs (Liam Dawson 2-18, Richard Gleeson 2-12, Ottneil Baartman 2-17) by 58 runs