FROM ZERO TO 100 IN 2 SEASONS, KYLE IS THE NEW FASHION, RIAESH TURNING LEMONS INTO LEMONADE
If you have been following the BPL since its inception then you would know how Kyle has evolved, his spoor is not an ordinary one, and his story must have been created and directed for a sequel of the transformers fame. He is the man to beat this season, he is so consistent it takes something special to derail him. He is throwing seriously mean punches and earning valuable bonus points. If anyone was asked to predict the outcome of this past weekend’s matches, none would have got it right. The Sheriff takes his hat off just for you Kyle. The Viper is living testimony that if at first you don’t succeed then you ought to dust yourself up and try again, and again.
KZN born Gauteng pair of Sbu and Vishen had a daunting task travelling to their homeland to duel with the finest in the East Coast but it was all in vain. Hawkeye and the Viper were unforgiving and they were ready this time around. In the first round Chillies made the headlines after uprooting both Kyle and Yulan prompting punters to consider him for top honours at the end of the season but it hasn’t really been a smooth ride, in fact it has been anything but smooth. The Saturday matches featured the much awaited return leg match between the King and the Prince of Pietermaritzburg, it was at Swerve, the same place where it all started a few years ago, that is the same venue where Chillies was made. The master and the student met again but this time it was not a friendly match, Hawkeye had to administer an antidote and corrective measures to a mutant Gumede in a bid to bring back equilibrium, it must have been double the regulated dosage because Sbu was quickly put to sleep and the master got his sweet revenge and calm was restored in Pietermaritzburg was once more. The score was 2-0 to Hawk and Sbu never woke up from his slumber, he staggered to Durban on Sunday and found Kyle and Jenny poised to strike, The Viper had already taken care of Vishen on Saturday (4-3, 4-1). Talking about Vishen, he shares the 25th of August birthday with Ishmael Mthethwa, something seems to be wrong with that date, both these athletes seem to be disorientated somehow, we all know that they are capable of much more than they are exhibiting at the moment but we can’t figure out how to motivate them.
Kyle was not done, he went on to beat Chillies 4-3 and 4-0 collecting a whopping 7 points in a match that produced 4 apples and catapulted the Viper to the number one spot on the log and for that he earns the coveted Sheriff’s Toast of the Week Award. Vishen had to go to the second largest city in KZN to spar with Hawkeye on Sunday, it was a good fight but at the end Yulan was too strong for the Dish. The final score was 2-1 and just like that, once again the coastal athletes proved their dominance over their inland counterparts. The BPL has exposed a lot of gaps especially in Gauteng and in the Free State . It still is a mystery as to how the inland players continue to struggle whilst the coastal ones are cruising.
Lenny did it again, he out muscled his travelling partner for the second time in three weeks, to cement his stature as the main man at Hotshots. Ironically though it seems that Lenny has only mastered getting the better of Sylvester, he is still in the red zone and looks set for yet another disappointing season. I bet if there were 9 Sylvester(s) in the league, Lenny would walk it, he would beat everyone home and away and break all records.
Thami Jabavu had a ball in Soweto and he invited Riaesh and Kevin to come over. Riaesh was dealt a very difficult hand from the onset but he has subsequently settled in very well and he is slowly scaling out of the relegation zone. If he can win against the likes of Rea Vaya then I don’t see how Pillay will be relegated, Riaesh has met Thami twice now and he has beaten him in both occasions and that raises questions on where exactly on the log he would be had he started with everyone else. Thami lost 3-4 and 2-4 but that turned out to be the same margin that he beat Kevin by on Sunday. If Thami wants to end up in the top 3 then he needs to switch to a different gear otherwise it will be another season before he gets a shot at promotion.
