Johannesburg, 26 October 2026
New blood in our DP World Lions bowling attack came to the fore at Wits University at the weekend as JJ Basson and Morteza Manack set up a bonus point win for #ThePrideOfJozi men in their Pro20 Cup match against the Limpopo Impalas.
DP World Lions captain Bjorn Fortuin sent Limpopo in to bat and left-arm quick Basson and off-spinner Manack took the new ball and set the tone. The visitors were restricted to 119 for six in their 20 overs and, thanks to a revitalised Connor Esterhuizen (74 not out off 37 balls), our DP World Lions rushed to that target in just 12.1 overs for the loss of two wickets.
The 18-year-old Basson made the first strike in the third over, when he had the experienced Raynard van Tonder caught behind, driving at a really full away-swinger.
Manack, the 19-year-old playing his first match of this season’s T20 competition, then struck in the next over, bowling Van Tonder’s opening partner, Limpopo captain Ernest Kemm, with a quicker delivery.
Liam Peters scored a run-a-ball 24, but Manack returned in the ninth over to bowl him as well, change of pace again being his modus operandi, leaving Limpopo on 51 for four.
Basson returned at the death and claimed the last wicket to fall, having Thomas Mayes caught behind for 21. The Hoerskool Noordheuwel prodigy conceded just five runs in his two overs at the death, to finish with outstanding figures of two for 13 in four overs.
Manack was almost as impressive, finishing with two for 23 in his full ration of overs, while fellow spinner Nqaba Peter was also excellent, conceding just 21 runs in his four overs. Paceman Siya Plaatjie was also lively and controlled, only 19 runs coming off his three overs.
Another new face, Neil Timmers scored 11 off nine balls to get the DP World Lions’ chase off to a brisk start, but then Zubayr Hamza and Esterhuizen took over.
The wonderfully in-form Hamza, who has scored three half-centuries in four innings and has been striking at 150, this time played the anchor role, scoring a run-a-ball 26 as he added 98 for the second wicket in less than 10 overs.
Esterhuizen took singles off his first two legal deliveries (there was a wide in-between) and then went nuclear, nonchalantly flicking Hlompo Modimokoane for six over square-leg. He struck another six and a four in the fourth over, and after he hit paceman Mayes for 16 runs in the last over of the powerplay, he had raced to 40 off 18 balls.
A lovely straight drive for a one-bounce four off left-arm spinner Kemm then took Esterhuizen to a 25-ball half-century, and two sixes in the 10th over off spinner Kyle Landsberg saw him into the seventies.
It was a destructive display of utter dominance by Esterhuizen, who struck the ball so cleanly that many of his six fours and five sixes seemed effortless.