Edinburgh Castle Rockers lived up to their name in their opening ETPL game, the Scottish derby against Glasgow Cosmic, by rocking to a seven-wickets victory in Voorburg, needing less than 12 overs to overhaul their rivals disappointing 115.

Pic courtesy of ETPL

It threatened to be even quicker when Edinburgh brought up the 100 halfway through the ninth over but the last 14 runs used up 15 balls which could impact their run rate towards the back end of the tournament.

Trent Boult, with his first five-wicket haul in T20 cricket, in his 316th match, set up the win and US international Andries Gous finished the job with 40 not out from 28 balls, including six fours and a six.

Gous came to the middle in the third over after an opening partnership of 41 between Ross Adair and JJ Smuts. First, Smuts helped  himself to three fours in the first over from Ali Khan and Adair then joined the party by thumping 22 (two sixes, two fours) off the second by Paul van Meekeren.

Smuts was the first to go, leg before to Keshav Maharaj and Adair followed, caught at extra cover by Glasgow captain George Munsey in Lungi Ngidi’s second over. However, Gous was already taking centre stage having hit his USA team-mate Khan for 15 in the previous over and he just kept on going until surprising caution took over after Liam Livingstone dismissed Brandon McMullan.

The Glasgow innings never got going with Gareth Delany, the other Ireland player in the Edinburgh line-up, straight into the action in the first over, holding a catch at mid-on to give Boult his first wicket, the huge one of Jason Roy third ball.

Maharaj found himself on a hat-trick  after Livingstone ran down the pitch to his first ball and was comprehensively stumped and the South African left armer then had Michael Leask leg before to leave Glasgow on 66 for six.

Boult’s return ended Richie Berrington’s innings at 28, and the New Zealand left armer then wrapped up the innings with three wickets in his last seven balls, the first caught by Adair at backward point.

Boult, Adair and Delany, who didn’t get a chance to bat or bowl, will all be back in action in the next match, on Friday afternoon, when they take on Amsterdam Flames.