• Resurgent Royals ready for Sunrisers

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    Friday’s SA20 second qualifier playoff at the Wanderers is a repeat of last season’s clash between the Sunrisers Eastern Cape and Paarl Royals.

    The Sunrisers were comfortable eight-wicket winners at Centurion a year ago, but the balance has shifted heading into this all-important encounter.

    The two-time champions arrive at the Bullring looking to respond after their defeat to the Pretoria Capitals in the first qualifier playoff, while the Royals will take confidence from dismantling the Joburg Super Kings in Thursday’s eliminator.

    It is a reversal of fortunes from 12 months ago, when the Sunrisers carried momentum and the Royals were left searching for answers.

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    Thursday’s win was particularly significant for the Royals, marking their first SA20 knockout victory after four previous attempts. It also underlined their resilience after bouncing back from defeat to the same JSK side in the final group match earlier in the week.

    “It was a tough one to take, probably not one we wanted to be playing in, in the third and fourth playoff after the first eight games,” said Royals all-rounder Asa Tribe.

    “We thought we could get ourselves into the top two, but we ended up in this position and fought back after a tough loss in the previous game.

    “The momentum is with us. They’re coming off a loss, and we’re flying high.”

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    The Royals have further bolstered their squad with the arrival of West Indies all-rounder Rovman Powell, who adds significant firepower to the middle order. Powell replaces mystery spinner Mujeeb Ur Rahman, who has been called up for international duty with Afghanistan.

    The Sunrisers, meanwhile, find themselves in the unfamiliar position of having lost a playoff match, but assistant coach Russell Domingo remains confident his side can bounce back on Friday.

    “We know the areas we need to get better at, coaches included. There are certain things we can maybe do a little differently, so there are good lessons for all of us,” Domingo said.

    “We know we’re a quality side and we’ve played really good cricket. Most of our losses have come in the last over, so we’ve been competitive in all of them.

    “We’re not far off. Nothing drastic, nothing major — just a bit of tinkering here and there.”

    Friday’s match starts at 5:30pm.

    Photo: Shaun Roy/Sportzpics

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    Simon Borchardt