Having won their last three Mzansi Super League matches in a row, the Durban Heat square up to two back-to-back matches against the Jozi Stars starting at the Imperial Wanderers today knowing that they need to win both convincingly to sustain their charge for a place in the tournament play-off match.
The Heat have enjoyed a resurgence in the second half of the competition after they lost two of their opening five games and rain claimed the other three. Thereafter the Heat have put in three clinical run chases with their third one being a tournament record chase in Paarl on Wednesday.
Left-arm spinner Keshav Maharaj has been a crucial part of the bowling attack for the Heat this season and with a strong batting line-up the team are bullish ahead of today’s clash, but are wary of the Stars line-up.
“The team are definitely on a high after the three wins in a row,” Maharaj said. “But we cannot take anything for granted and as the old cliché goes you must beware the wounded animal.
"Even though the Stars have not won a game in this season’s version of the MSL, they have a strong line-up and we know that because they won the competition last year. We are just going to take it game by game and try and ride off the confidence that we have built over the last three games.”
Maharaj has taken on the mantle of opening the bowling. “I enjoy taking the new ball because it is an opportunity to pick up wickets early but I make sure that I am ready for any situation. It’s important that you are ready to take the ball whenever and that’s what is exciting about T20 cricket,” he added.
This weekend’s trip to Johannesburg will give the Heat a chance to put pressure on the top three teams in the tournament and another win would put them right into the mix ahead of the return match in Durban on Tuesday next week. The Heat's batsmen have flourished and with the ball Maharaj has been a shining light with an economy rate of just over six and a half runs to the over. Today's game gets under way at 12:30pm.