CHENNAI: Two wins in eight matches (Two washouts) — this is the current record defending champions MI Cape Town (MICT) has to show for this SA20 season. With play-off positions still up for grabs, the next two games for MICT will be virtual knockouts.
On paper, they looked the best team before the season began, despite losing Dewald Brevis. He was signed for a record fee (16.5 million rand) in the auction last year by Pretoria Capitals (PC). However, things have not gone their way this season.
Former Proteas wicketkeeper and SA20 Ambassador Mark Boucher also was taken aback with the form, and felt that the middle-order misfiring may be the reason behind the dismal season. "I think their poor performances hurt them quite a bit," Boucher said in a virtual interaction facilitated by SA20. "Up front, Ryan Rickleton's done well. I see (Rassie) van der Dussen has performed at certain times. But I think it's just the middle order that they've really struggled with. It's difficult to put your finger on what's gone wrong. Maybe one or two players are just out of form and that happens. Unfortunately in T20 cricket, there's no place to hide. If you don't hit form at the start of the competition, It's always going to be tough to put it back," he explained.
West Indies batter Nicholas Pooran, English wicketkeeper-batter Tom Moores and South African all-rounder Jason Smith have not lived up to their reputation consistently. However, the former Mumbai Indians head coach did not rule out their chances of qualifying. "You can never write off any MI team when they come good usually towards the back end and they've got a history of not starting well in competitions. But if they can they can win two of their next games with bonus points and hopefully one or two results go there their way, they can still qualify. Any team that's going to be playing against MICT in a qualifier is going to panic a bit," he remarked.
'Surprising that Rickleton is left out'
Meanwhile South Africa have left out the likes of Rickleton, Tristan Stubbs and Ottneil Baartman for the upcoming T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka. "It's surprising that they've left Rickleton out," Boucher said. In the ongoing SA20 season, Rickleton has scored two tons. His strike rate in both those knocks were higher than 175 and he is on the top of the scoring charts this season with 324 runs in eight matches averaging 54. "I think the big question and why this is coming up is because, we have got a batter who is injured. So, how long will it take for him to get over his injury? Is he going to go to a World Cup, still with a little bit of a niggle? Has he got enough time to get himself into some sort of form?," Boucher opined. The player in question, could be Tony de Zorzi, who is ruled out of the ongoing SA20, and according to reports, is expected to be fit before the World Cup. His last T20I match came in October 2025 against Pakistan.
Another big snub in the team is pacer Ottneil Baartman. The pacer has been one of the stars for Paarl Royals, grabbing a hat-trick in their win against Pretoria Capitals on Thursday. "Baartman has always been someone I felt has been a little bit hard done by because he he's always done really well for South Africa. Even a guy like Stubbs. He's missed out maybe because he has been batting out of position. So, that's also something that you've got to look at," Boucher signed off.