Marais ton in vain as Iinyathi storm to second win

Eastern Storm batter Dewan Marais scored a ton but it was in vain as the Eastern Cape Iinyathi registered a second consecutive win in the Division 2 CSA One Day Cup, notching up an impressive 59-run triumph at Buffalo Park in East London on Wednesday. Iinyathi had started the tournament with two defeats, but the Storm and Mpumalanga Rhinos’ victories elevated the Eastern Cape side to fourth place behind the Knights, Storm and Limpopo Impalas. Their next game is in East London against the Garden Route Badgers on Sunday.

The Storm were chasing a target of 307 but fell short at 247. Marais was the Lone Ranger in the Storm’s innings with his maiden century in List A. The 21-year-old finished with 110 off 93 balls, including eight fours and four sixes.

The other major contributions for the Storm were from Jurie Snyman (59), captain Grant Thomson, who got in some lusty blows (19), and Kabelo Sekhukhune (21). But they were not enough, as the middle and lower order did not kick in. Thando Ntini, Hardus Coetzer, Kgaudi Molefe, Chad Classen and Nico Van Zyl were among the wicket-takers for Iinyathi.

[paywall]

Nathan Roux’s decision to bat first earlier in the day was spot on. The top and middle order combined well. They piled on some important runs up front, something that the East London side had struggled to pull off at times this season.

[/paywall]