Durban High School (DHS) and Glenwood High School hit the ground running in preparation for the 2023 cricket season.
The Xhealth Grey Cricket Festival 2023 was hosted by Grey College, Bloemfontein, from January 6 to 9.
Ten teams participated, with DHS and Glenwood being KwaZulu-Natal’s representatives at the tournament.
The festival combined various formats of cricket, a two-day game on the opening days followed by a 50-over game and concluding with a 20-over game.
Glenwood director of cricket Zayne Bux was pleased with his side and how they had used this festival as preparation for the cricket season.
“The experience at the festival has given us the opportunity to test ourselves against some of the top cricket schools in the country and in foreign conditions,” said Bux.
He also praised the way his side had dealt with pressure and how that helped strengthen the boys as they also learned about the combinations that would be most effective for the upcoming season.
“We had an experience where our boys had seen the value of putting the team first, and this will help us during difficult periods during the season,” said Bux.
The bulk of Glenwood’s touring squad comprised under-16s and they had previously been given first-team experience during 2022.
Bux shared how the tour was also an opportunity for two newbie players who’d not been exposed to cricket at first-team level prior to the tour.
“The squad exceeded our expectations of them as we toured with a young squad and competed against opposition ranked in the top 18 nationally. The Glenwood boys showed grit and a passion to play for the badge,” said Bux.
Glenwood had a mixed bag of results as they drew, won and lost in their three matches.
On the other hand, DHS drew their first match but lost the next two.
DHS high-performance cricket coach Tylor Trenoweth said the team that represented DHS at the festival had worked hard to achieve the best result, and that they used this as an opportunity to introduce junior players – only two players were in matric.
Trenoweth said that the tournament showcased the potential of the junior players and gave them a great starting point to work from.
He said it helped with preparations for their first game of the regular season against Hilton College as all the players got some game time under their belts.
“We were happy with what we saw and took a lot of positives out of the games. An early start with such a competitive tournament allows us to evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of our team and also allows us to build on what we have already achieved,” said Trenoworth.
DHS took on Hoër Volkskool Potchefstroom in a two-day contest. The match ended in a draw. After being bowled out for 57 in 32 overs, the Blue Typhoon blew back with force with a second innings total of 224/8, with all-rounder Semal Pillay scoring 74 off 130 balls.
KZN Schools Day 1 & 2 Results: two-day game. DHS, 1st innings 57 all out after 32 overs; 2nd innings 224/8 2nd (Pillay 74, Peters 61) v Hoër Volkskool Potchefstroom, 1st innings 235/7 after 62 overs; 2nd innings 86/9 declared. Match drawn.
Menlo Park, 1st innings 305/9 declared after 69.5 overs; 2nd innings 138/4 declared in 25 overs v Glenwood, 1st innings 207 all out after 56 overs (Roundtree 94); 2nd innings 83/7 in 42 overs. Match drawn.
KZN Schools Day 3 Results: 50 overs. Hoër Volkskool Potchefstroom 97 all out (Mbatha 5/18) v Glenwood 98/4. Glenwood won by 6 wickets. DHS 179 all out (Pillay 57) v KES 180/6 (Pillay 2/18). DHS lost by four wickets.
KZN Schools Day 4 Results: 20 overs. Grey College 159/9 (Pillay 4/22) v DHS 135/7 (Behari 46). DHS lost by 24 runs. Grey High School 169 v Glenwood 158 (Roundtree 67). Glenwood lost by 11 runs.
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