Mzansi Super League 2019, Standout player, biggest takeaway, best team – Dale Steyn, Paarl Rocks, and rain-affected matches

After the group stages of the MSL 2019, with all teams playing 10 games each, we’re through to the business end of what has been a fine tournament so far. We look at all the big talking points.

Standout player – Dale Steyn

It’s a wonder Cape Town have finished fifth out of six teams in the tournament. Wickets haven’t been a problem for the side, at least as far as Dale Steyn is concerned. The South Africa ace, who retired from Tests to concentrate on his white-ball career, has shown the national team selectors he can longer be ignored when it comes to white-ball series. After the group stage of the MSL, he is second on the wicket-takers’ charts, with 15 wickets in eight matches – the top wicket-taker, Imran Tahir, has 16 in two whole matches more. Steyn has averaged 15.13 at a fine economy of 7.09. It may well be the start of his second coming.

Standout team – Paarl Rocks

It’s a hard one to call, given they finished top of the group stages only on net run-rate. Nelson Mandela Bay Giants, finished level on 27 points with the Rocks, but had a marginally inferior net run-rate, which means they will have to take on Tshwane Spartans for a chance to meet the Rocks in the final. The Rocks finished the league stages on a high, after an indifferent start, winning five of their last seven group games to claim the top spot. Their wins have come as a result of team performances as well.

Room for improvement – The scheduling

Durban Heat have been hard done by in the tournament. They stood a chance to make the play-offs till the final game of the league stage, but a washout meant they finished fourth. It was the fifth match they were involved in that was washed out, meaning they missed out on potentially 10 points. It also meant a total of eight matches in the tournament were washed out. For the next edition, CSA certainly have to take into consideration the timing of the tournament. Or well, it runs the risk of being considered a no-contest.

Standout quote

”Hardus Viljoen’s not playing today because he’s lying in bed with my sister, they got married yesterday, so …”

• Faf du Plessis, when asked for his team news at toss.