Markram’s leadership sparks Sunrisers’ revival

The sun is shining on the Sunrisers Eastern Cape and they have a chance to take the defence of their title by the scruff of the neck.

The Eastern Cape-based side has been on a hunt for the form that has seen them clinch back-to-back titles in the first two editions of the competition. After suffering three damaging losses in their opening fixtures, their double win over the Durban Super Giants has restored some order.

After being inserted to bat first, the Sunrisers didn't put a foot wrong as they squeezed the life out of the visitors in the match — dismissing them for a below-par score of 115/8.

The home side needed only 15.2 overs to secure their second win of the season and with their next two fixtures against the Joburg Super Kings and the Pretoria Capitals in their backyard, the stars could be aligning.

Captain Aiden Markram is the Sunrisers leading run scorer, and he was pleased with how his bowlers executed on the night to set up their win. Richard Gleeson (eight wickets) continued his good form in the tournament with figures of 2/19, and he was the leading wicket-taker at the conclusion of the contest.

“I thought the boys bowled really well, although we didn’t expect as much bounce; we were very fortunate to have lost that toss,” he said, while addressing the media.

“Our bowlers have been good throughout the competition. It was one of the areas we initially identified as an area we needed to be better at, and I think they have nailed it. They have been unbelievable and it helps for the batters to know that you don't have as much to chase.

“Execution is everything; they nailed what they needed to, and they got the balls in the right areas, they held lengths really well and they reaped the rewards from there on. A lot of it is execution on the day, and the boys are getting it right.”

The two wins have blown the table wide open, with Markram and his troops moving to fourth, while the Super Giants have been relegated to the bottom of the table as they have now lost three matches on a spin.

Markram added that he was happy to finally have some luck on his side as his team played better cricket than what the results showed, and he believes they could be flipping the script just in time.

“I think its pretty hard to put your finger on it, to be honest. We have been getting much better starts and with the ball, we have also been getting off to good starts. We have managed to get in front of the game, whether it is in batting or bowling and that helps in T20 cricket.

“When you have momentum on your side and you're playing good cricket, you get the rub of the green. But when it was a tough period like it was for us, balls just fell over heads or they just didn’t carry, but when you see things go your way, it gives you a bit of belief that things might be turning around.”