MTN National Club Cricket Round-up

Tuks upset Champions

CENTURION - Test opening batsman Gary Kirsten is set to join Claremont tomorrow to improve their chances. But the cavalry may arrive too late to help the defending title-holders who lost in a to Pretoria University on the opening day of the National Club Championship at L C de Villiers yesterday.

While Stellenbosch University, losing finalists last year and also drawn in Section 1, beat East Randers CBC Old Boys in their opening game and Rand Afrikaans University gained a comfortable win over Natal club champions Zingari by 58 runs at Pretoria Technikon, Pretoria University, better known as Tuks caused a first day upset when they squeezed through by 10 runs at L C de Villiers Oval.

The young Pretoria student side, led by Northerns Titans all-rounder Dirkie de Vos, fielded and bowled tightly to create enough problems on a slow pitch. Batting first Tuks scored 223 for five in their 45 overs with all-rounder Pieter van Rooyen slamming 91 off only 91 balls with six fours and a two sixes.

Richard Moron top-scored with 60 in the Claremont innings but Andre Serfontein, who managed three for 33 with his lively seam bowling in his nine overs was brought back to snuff out the Claremont lower-order revival when he ran through the tail after getting rid of Moron.

Wiaan Smit, Free State University, scored the first century of the week when he scored 116 off only 100 balls and was involved in a fourth wicket partnership of 163 off only 140 balls as Kovsies scored 303 for five.

Murray Creed, a member of South Africa's Under-19 World Cup squad last season, picked up the first five wickets haul of the week for Port Elizabeth University. Playing in the game against the Eastern Province neighbours Old Selbornians, he helped engineer a relatively easy UPE victory with figures of five for 27 in six overs. Old Selbornians were routed for 86 at L D de Villiers Oval 2.

Tight bowling and fielding also provided the backbone of RAU's victory over Zingari with the star-studded Gauteng champions battling to put a sizeable total on the board. Yet 191/6 with Zander de Bruyn's 44 the top score, was enough as the Nic Pothas-led students ran through the experienced Pietermaritzburg combination with Ryan Venter 3/24 and Frikkie Erasmus 2/17 did most of the damage as Zingari crumbled to 133 in 41.1 overs.