Write the weekend with Mr Price Sport – 15/10/12.
Another weekend of sport, another series of fan submission for the Mr Price Sport ‘Write the weekend’ competition. With rugby, cricket and tennis being just some of the sports to write about, the submissions were again coming through thick and fast into the inbox with the best pieces appearing below.
Winner gets a R500 gift voucher from Mr Price Sport – let’s see who it was this week.
Alan Foulis
Shanghai Masters: Djokovic outwits, outplays and outlasts Murray. Andy Murray stepped out onto court yesterday with the goal of retaining a third successive Shanghai Masters title. The last time these two titans met, it was the US Open final and Murray took the honours. This however, turned out to be a very different affair with Djokovic not only taking the match 5-7 7-6 (13-11) 6-3, but exhibiting some extraordinary stroke play to which Murray had no answer. Djokovic, in frustration, smashed his racket in the first set but managed to turn the match around by successfully defending five match points to take the title.
That racket smash was quite something!
Kaleem Sheikh
Fellow sportsmen. Well well … on the football front Bloemfontein Celtic beat Kaizer Chiefs 4-3 to claim this year’s Mangaung African Cultural Festival Macufe Cup at the Free State Stadium on Sunday.
Angola stayed calm on Sunday at home to break Zimbabwean hearts to win 2-0 in Luanda and qualify for the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations finals in South Africa.
Golf, the old man’s sport … Sweden’s Jonas Blixt overhauled a stumbling John Mallinger to win his first PGA Tour title by one shot at the Frys.com Open in San Martin, California, on Sunday.
Cricket cricket … the KlapIT T20 is underway, A fine all-round performance by Moises Henriques was enough to lift the Sydney Sixers to a crucial 14-run win over the Chennai Super Kings in their Champions League T20 at the Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg on Sunday.
In the second match the Bizhub Highveld Lions did us Joburgers proud with their win over the Mumbai Indians. It however is always a pleasure to watch the little master Sachin Tendulkar bat. Neil McKenzie and Quinton de Kock both struck fifties to lead the Highveld Lions to a comfortable eight-wicket win over the Mumbai Indians in their Champions League Twenty20 match at the Wanderers in Johannesburg on Sunday.
Action packed stuff and you didn’t even touch on the rugby. Nice work.
Ashley Oliver
It has really been a fantastic weekend and the highlight for me was our very own South African teams showing the rest of the world that SA cricket is strong and healthy. It made me proud to be South African again after an awful display in the T20 world cup by our national team. In particular the Titans winning with such ease really made me realise that this country is rich in cricketing talents, as I was a bit worried where our next talents were going to come from. The Lions showing real SA fight to come and win the game from an awful position they found themselves in was brilliant.
Would be nice to see the youngsters get a proper chance in T20. This format should be seen as a building block going forward.
Anton van Vught
…. After years of heartbreak in being a typical Joburg supporter watching The Lions loose more than win, it was a special Sunday evening watching them chase a sizable target set by the experienced international team, of the Mumbai Indians. We looked in deep trouble when left hander De Kock came to the crease still looking “wet behind the ears”. Even the wife commented, ‘Wow, is he 12?’ With the likes of Slinga Malinga, Harbhajan Singh and Mitchell Johnson in the bowling attack I started to pray for a good old fashioned Joburg thunderstorm. It came, in the name of Captain Courageous Neil McKenzie, his experience and De Kock’s talent showed no mercy to the Tendulkar led all-star line up finishing the game with a few balls to spare and an unbeaten 121 run partnership. Gosh it felt good to be a Lions supporter last night…
I’m not a fan of the for format, but the Lions looked great when I caught the highlights!
Riaan Nel
The Lions are out of Super Rugby thanks to very Cheeky Mr Watson and after the game on Saturday they might be out of Currie Cup contention. I don’t care if you say “They are already in the semi,” Or “It was the B Team”, the fact is the Lions A TEAM for the day got 50 points on them by the team who was last on the log. To make problems worse they face a WP team that likes to kick you when you are down. The only positive prayer the Lions should have this week is – Please remind WP to pack the Choke Chains. This is a semi after all.
WP vs Sharks finals – it’s going to happen!
Gareth Korb
Great sporting weekend, it was not the Currie Cup that was my highlight, but the 7`s rugby was amazing, was awake from the start to the end. To see Kenya rise in the rugby circles, and even the smaller nations like Spain and Portugal. Unfortunately SA were undone by a very physical Fiji. I can see us doing very well this year with this team, and who knows, if our 7`s do well our 15 a-side boys may rise again!
Blitzbokke didn’t win the trophy but they did beat a team in a black jersey – rare and always enjoyable experience 
And the winner is…
Enrico Oosthuizen
With four teams to compete for two semi-final places in the final round of regular season, it was bound to be a cracker of a Currie Cup weekend and indeed it was. Although having its doubters in recent years, this weekend again emphasised the stature and importance of the competition to the domestic game. All the teams played their returning Springboks and immediately the difference in class was exposed. The Bok-laden Sharks, WP and Bulls ran rampant; perhaps proving some critics point that returning Boks should not be allowed to play in latter stages of Currie Cup. Jury still out though.
Great piece Enrico, very topical point. Returning Boks essentially make the Currie Cup a 2 week tournament. All the Boks dedicate the wins to the youngsters who have played all season, but it just seems a little bizarre. That said, sponsors naturally benefit and they make it all happen. Guess it will always be a sticky subject.
You want to win like Enrico did? Simply write the weekend each weekend – 100 word submissions to ben@thebounce.co.za reviewing some/all sporting events from the weekend and it could be you.
