a brilliant diving catch at midwicket. What a way to seal the win. Nortje signs off with a double wicket maiden, PC win by 29 runs and book themselves a spot in the final.
Rain threatened to push the game into tomorrow but it relented. The conditions it left behind were tough, the pitch was two-paced and there was drizzle in patches. But Capitals, as the skipper said, scrapped through and became SA20's first team to make the final. Join us tomorrow if to find out if they'll be joined by Sunrisers or Super Kings. For now, it's me Ekanth, signing off on behalf of my co-commentator, Danyal and our scorer, Thilak.
Theunis de Bruyn, Capitals Captain: Very happy, these kinds of wickets bring teams close together. Runs will be less, so it'll be a scrappy affair. The bowlers are the engine room, they've been fantastic. One more game to go. I don't know about Wayne, they're taking it day by day. But we need to stay calm, and if it goes our way it goes our way.
Rilee Rossouw, POTM: The plan was for me to bowl if there were two left-handers out there. I bowl in big games, and I take wickets in the semi-final. It was a two-paced pitch, new ball went up and down. We lost wickets in the middle, decided to take it deep and it paid off in the end. In pressure games like this 153 is like 160-170 on that type of wicket. Our bowlers did well to win it for us.
David Miller, Royals Captain: It was gut-wrenching. Think we bowled well, one or two overs were expensive but that happens. We lost too many wickets while batting which cost us. The wicket was tacky, they played well upfront with the bat to get Lungi away. Probably 145 was par. We'd bowled well but let ourselves down in the last three overs. Obviously short at the end of the day. We did well overall in the season, it's difficult to carry momentum through. We lost-won, lost-won and didn't really hit our strap. We can reflect on a good season, having made the semi-final. It's been a great competition, sad it ends like this.
Capitals have shown they're not only consistent, but also clutch. They thrashed the Royals yesterday, and, well, they've made short work of them today, too, in the end. It's handshakes all around, and now PC can look forward to Saturday's showpiece final. Bosch was brilliant all around. He got Roy early, followed it with the key wicket of Buttler. Rashid got Stirling who was looking good, then snuck a googly through Vilas. Neesham took a couple, Nortje wasn't on top but finished off the game. For Royals, Buttler and Stirling started big but were undone by spin. The middle-order bats got starts but were cut short. Miller tried to fight through but fell short.
another swing and a miss
chipped into the onside. This is on course to be a wicket maiden. What a tournament for Nortje
See, semi-finals can be such great things.
excellent catch at wide long-on, which surely brings the Royals' campaign to a close. Another one in the slot, but Miller couldn't quite get it out of the meat of the bat. The Capitals can start celebrating
varies the pace, and the top spin means there's extra bounce that takes the ball outside the arc of Miller's swing
a bit too fast, squeezed into the onside. Miller realised two wasn't on, so he sent Ngidi back
Leachy: "Batting from PR has been awful all tournament... get Miller on strike!!!"
crunched to mid-off. Miller needs to face these remaining 12 balls now
top-edged and it's a smart catch as the Royals lose their eighth. Bosch held off the other fielders, ordering them clear of his path to hold on smartly and edge Capitals closer to the final
tailing back in, beating the batter
that was in the slot to heave over midwicket, but gets a toe-end on it to long-on. Glares at his bat
that's gone all the way for six, just!. It was in the slot, but Miller got more height on it than distance. But he has such power that it just about goes over the head of long-off
miscued over cover for a single. This is the over, surely
Vijay : "What's the par score now? Update " 129
bouncer he swings at and misses
and he responds by crunching it past extra cover for four. That was reminscient of Lance Klusener in that final over of the World Cup semi-final
hits it a mile into the air, and Rashid and Mendis were converging underneath it, only for the Sri Lankan to shell it. That would surely have killed it off, but Miller survives, and the Royals sneak another couple
nudged towards square leg
Sahil Sharma : "You mean Capitals are 12 runs ahead?" Apologies, yes. It is late!. Meanwhile, the drizzle is intensifying
holes out to cow corner, and that might be the one that seals the Royals' fate. It was in the slot to heave over that fielder, but Neesham's sometimes really tricky to get away. Doesn't get hold of it properly, and it's well taken in the deep
slapped through the offside for a single
There's a light drizzle in the air, and the Royals are 12 runs behind at the moment
bouncer, whacked by Miller into the deep in front of square on the legside. he keeps the strike, but Bosch has done phenomenally well there. 4-0-21-2. It might yet see him and his side play the inaugural SA20 final
another slower ball, guided to short third, who misfields. Miller to face the final ball of an excellent over from Bosch
Over 19 • PR 124/10