Captain Heinrich Klaasen has rued a slew of dropped catches, as the Tshwane Spartans fell to a six-wicket defeat by the Nelson Mandela Bay Giants in Tuesday’s Mzansi Super League fixture at St George’s Park in Port Elizabeth.

Australian batsman Ben Dunk spearheaded the Giants’ successful pursuit of a 189-run target with two deliveries to spare. He hit 99 not out from 54 deliveries, which featured 10 fours and a quartet of sixes.

Dunk, however, was dropped four times – by leg-side fielders Lungi Ngidi, Wiaan Mulder and Tony de Zorsi. Ngidi missed two opportunities.

‘If we give a guy like Dunk plenty of chances, that’s what happens. He batted exceptionally well, but he put a few chances as well,’ said Klaasen.

‘I think we bowled extremely well at the start, but then we put chances down. We need to get back to the drawing board as quickly as possible. We need to recap quickly and sort it out.’

The result didn’t yield any movement in the 2019 tournament’s six-team standings. The Giants remain in second position and the Spartans third.

The Paarl Rocks and Durban Heat will contest Wednesday’s MSL fixture at Boland Park. The Jozi Stars, meanwhile, have been ruled out of contention for this year’s title. They are the reigning champions, after beating the Cape Town Blitz in last year’s final, but have since suffered seven consecutive defeats.

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