Williamson’s 101* was his maiden century in T20 cricket.

At Robben Island Prison, Prisoner No. 466/64 was kept in a tiny cell by South Africa’s pro-apartheid regime for 18 years. That number was printed on the shirts of every Cape Cobras player (in support of the Nelson Mandela Foundation) in their first outing of the 2014 Champions League T20 on Friday. Apart from that, there was little else about their on-field show to write home about.

Bowling first, the Cobras were punished by Northern Knights for 206 runs in their 20 overs, with the first wicket stand between Kane Williamson and Anton Devcich alone costing them 140 runs. Williamson never once allowed the opposition bowlers to settle. His 49-ball 101 not out was a scintillating effort. It was his maiden hundred in T20 cricket and also the fastest in this tournament.

Williamson’s innings was a classy, non-slogging one. It was a brilliant combination of power and timing. And he always stayed ahead of the bowlers, reading their minds and adjusting his shots accordingly. The Kiwi began with a four against a beefy Charl Langeveldt in the first over and then upped the ante when left-arm spinner Robin Peterson came to bowl. A four down the ground and a six straight over the sightscreen in the ninth over provided the perfect launching pad for an imposing total.

Sixth over in the Knights’ innings, Williamson went down the pitch to Peterson but mistimed his lofted drive. Hashim Amla ran back from mid-off, dived to his left but failed to catch it. Williamson was on 25 then and the team total was 44. Along with Devcich (67, 46 balls), Williamson went on to score at over 10 an over until the 13th over. It was the highest opening partnership against the Cobras and a match-winning one.

Once they crossed the daunting landmark of 200, it was always going to be very difficult to achieve for the Cobras. But rain during the break ensured that Duckworth-Lewis had come into the picture and with more rain expected later, the chase would all but be a truncated one. Given a big let off, the South African side needed a good start to be in hunt, or to keep pace with the D/L par score. But Trent Boult never allowed them to free their arms. When the rains ended the match once and for all in the eighth over, Cobras were 44/2. The D/L par score at that point was 77. The South Africans lost the match by 33 runs (D/L method). For the Kiwis, it was their fourth straight win in this competition.

Boult and Tim Southee had 12 wickets between them in the three qualifying matches the Knights played. Here, Boult started off with a beauty that pitched on middle stump and moved enough off the seam to beat Stiaan van Zyl’s bat and knock back the off stump. Southee, too, bowled a good first over, conceding just one run. He ended up giving away just 10 runs from his two overs, while Boult conceded eight from his twelve balls.

Brief scores: Knights 206/5 in 20 overs (K Williamson 101 n.o., A Devcich 67; C Langeveldt 2/27) beat Cobras 44/2 in 7.2 overs (H Amla 20) by 33 runs under (D/L)