Late Blooming Capitals Aim to Stop In-Form Quinton de Kock in SA20 Durban Showdown

Only one win in the first five matches can be deflating. The Sourav Ganguly-coached Pretoria Capitals (PC) went through those emotions in the first 10 days of SA20 Season 4. From January 7, it was quite the opposite as the Keshav Maharaj-led side won four out of five matches to enter the playoffs as a top-two team. Now, PC have two chances to enter the final, but they would want to seal their spot in the title clash on Wednesday when they face Sunrisers Eastern Cape in Qualifier 1 in Durban.

"We were very disappointed with our home results. It has been a topsy-turvy sort of season, but we found momentum when it mattered the most. We are still in search of playing a clinical game covering all facets of the game," skipper Maharaj said ahead of Qualifier 1.

"It's a big part of the team-the kind of character shown. That's what we displayed in the game where we were 7/5 (against Joburg Super Kings). All the odds were against us during that time. The two characters in Sherfane Rutherford and Dewald Brevis stand out. I wouldn't say we are invincible, but there is a lot of belief that from any situation, we will find a way to get through it."

Maharaj wants his top order to deliver. So far, Brevis (194) and Rutherford (317) have scored most of the crucial runs. Maharaj hopes the top order-consisting of Shai Hope, Connor Esterhuizen and Wihan Lubbe-peaks now.

"Barring one game, we haven't got the starts that we needed from the top order. Shai scored a hundred in one of the games. Hopefully, we can react better."

Maharaj is also wary of the form that SEC's Quinton de Kock is in. In eight innings, he has scored 328 runs to be the tournament's second-highest run-scorer.

"Ever since he returned to international cricket, he's back to being the old Quinny that we know. He's batting exceptionally well. We have got to make sure we have our plans ready for him," Maharaj said.