Ottneil Baartman Shines with Hat-Trick as Paarl Royals Secure SA20 Playoff Spot

Baartman's Stellar Performance Leads Royals to Victory

Centurion, South Africa - On January 16, Ottneil Baartman showcased his exceptional seam bowling skills, achieving a remarkable hat-trick and a five-wicket haul that propelled the Paarl Royals into the SA20 playoffs during a thrilling match at a packed Centurion stadium.

As reported, Baartman became only the second player in SA20 history to secure a hat-trick, following Lungi Ngidi's achievement just a week prior against the Durban Super Giants. His impressive victims included Andre Russell, Lizaad Williams, and Ngidi. Earlier in the match, he also took two wickets in consecutive deliveries, clean-bowling Connor Esterhuizen and trapping Jordan Cox leg before wicket. This performance allowed the 32-year-old to surpass his former teammate Marco Jansen, becoming the league's all-time leading wicket-taker with 57 dismissals.

Baartman's figures of 5/16 were instrumental in restricting the Capitals to a mere 127 runs, enabling the Royals to chase down the target comfortably with six wickets in hand and 4.1 overs to spare. This victory earned them a crucial bonus point, elevating the Royals to the top of the Betway SA20 standings with a total of 21 points.

With this win, the Royals join the Sunrisers Eastern Cape as the first two teams to secure playoff spots.

Notably, Sikandar Raza was the first Royals player to congratulate Baartman on his hat-trick. The Zimbabwean international continued to shine, following his recent batting exploits with an impressive spell of spin bowling, claiming the vital wickets of Dewald Brevis and Shai Hope, finishing with figures of 2/29. Raza now ranks just below Baartman on the tournament's leading wicket-takers list with 13 wickets.

The match featured four candidates for Player of the Match, including Baartman, Rubin Hermann, Sikandar Raza, and Sherfane Rutherford, with Baartman receiving an overwhelming 89.5% of the fan votes.

The Royals faced early challenges in their run chase, losing openers Lhuan-dre Pretorius and Asa Tribe cheaply to an inspired Lizaad Williams (2/28). However, Rubin Hermann (46 runs off 28 balls, including 5 fours and 3 sixes) and Dan Lawrence (41 runs off 32 balls, with 3 fours and 2 sixes) formed a crucial 52-run partnership for the third wicket, stabilizing the innings before captain David Miller guided the team to victory with an unbeaten 28.

The Royals are now well-positioned to finish in the top two, securing a place in Qualifier 1, with two round-robin matches left against the Durban Super Giants at Kingsmead on Saturday and the Joburg Super Kings at Boland Park on Monday.

Meanwhile, the Capitals have one match remaining against the Joburg Super Kings at the Wanderers on Saturday, aiming for maximum points to reach the playoffs for the first time since the inaugural season.

Centurion will host the Eliminator on Thursday, January 22, after successfully selling out all five matches held this season at the Capitals' home ground.