Cape Town Blitz opening batsman Janneman Malan’s solid stretch of form in the Mzansi Super League continued on Wednesday, when a brisk half-century contributed to a comfortable 12-run victory over the Nelson Mandela Bay Giants at Newlands.

Malan struck an entertaining 57 in a final total of 175 for six, after which the Giants reached an insufficient 132 for six in pursuit of an adjusted target. The visitors chase was reduced to 16 overs, after play was delayed due to floodlight failure.

The result was the Blitz’s third consecutive victory – and consolidated their lead in the six-team standings.

‘I think the wicket was pretty good. It was a good toss to win and the batsmen did really well. Our score was way over par and we were happy with what we got. I’ll take the learnings out of this one and take it into the next games,’ said Malan, who was named Man of the Match.

Triumphant captain Farhaan Behardien, too, is eager to capitalise on the momentum gained through three wins in a row. Thursday was his first match as skipper, after returning from the Proteas’ tour of Australia and replacing stand-in captain Dawid Malan, who has since left for the T10 League in Sharjah.

‘The back end was quite tough and they had some big-hitters who were doing well, so we always had to be on our toes,’ added Behariden.

‘We are happy with the three wins, but we need to build the momentum through the middle and the end stages. It is nice that we are playing back-to-back and we’ll take the momentum on from here.’

Image: Gallo