The Eastern Cape Iinyathi have a twofold mission on their trip to the Diamond Oval in Kimberley on Friday to face Northern Cape Heat — secure their first win in the Pro20 and end their run of not having won in the city in the shorter format.
Their last bus trip back from the City of Diamonds to KuGompo City ended with a lot of “what ifs” and “could haves”.
That was two years ago, when the Heat were victorious by 17 runs.
As the only remaining members of that squad, Mncedisi Malika, Jerome Bossr, Nathan Roux, and Jason Niemand remember the feeling from that day.
At Wednesday’s training session at Buffalo Park, they were the last ones to leave the nets.
The session was intense, with some players even going shirtless as they sweated it out in the sunny afternoon, and plenty of balls found the middle of the bat.
The Iinyathi entourage travelled to Kimberley on Thursday.
The plan is simple. If they win the toss and bat first, make use of the powerplay.
If they bowl first, the aim is to restrict the Heat to as low a score as possible.
The surface at the Diamond Oval is often considered batting-friendly, with the average first innings totals ranging between 165 and 170.
Bossr is aware of the statistics at the ground and has urged his teammates to execute their plans properly.
He wants his team to gather as many points as possible against fellow division two teams in their group, as it will be harder to get results against the top-flight sides.
Iinyathi have the Heat, Limpopo Impalas and Garden Route Badgers from the second-tier division in their group, along with heavyweights Warriors, Lions, Dolphins and North West Dragons.
“The Heat have changed a lot from the team from past seasons; just like us, we are no longer what we were two years back,” Bossr said.
“Games are going to come thick and fast in the T20 competition, so it is key for us to gather as many points as we can, especially in the opening rounds and against the division two teams, if we are to make it to the knockouts.”
He was not concerned about the team’s form.
In their trips to the Limpopo Impalas and Eastern Storm for the three-day 1st Class Shield and Pro50 matches, they have come out empty-handed.
“It’s not like we have been playing badly,” Bossr said. “It’s just that we have had collapses at bad times, especially with the bat.
“We have good batters; they know what is to be fixed, and I feel we will be able to get the results we much need.”
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