Sourav Ganguly’s misfortune in big finals appears to have followed him from captaincy to coaching, as Sunrisers Eastern Cape outclassed his Pretoria Capitals by six wickets to clinch their third SA20 title in four seasons at a packed Newlands. Chasing 159 in the final, Sunrisers rode on a superb, unbeaten 114-run partnership for the fifth wicket between captain Tristan Stubbs (63 not out off 41 balls) and Matthew Breetzke (68 not out off 49) to seal victory with four balls to spare. The sold-out Newlands crowd was treated to a finish of the highest quality as the duo calmly dismantled the Capitals’ attack under pressure. Earlier, Dewald Brevis had threatened to tilt the final Pretoria’s way with a scintillating 101 off 56 balls, one of the finest innings of the tournament. Walking in with his side struggling at 8 for 2, the league’s record signing counter-attacked in stunning fashion, smashing eight fours and seven sixes to lift Pretoria to 158 for 7. However, the Capitals squandered momentum at the death. After Brevis fell early in the 19th over, the last three batters — Roston Chase, Keshav Maharaj and Lizaad Williams — managed just three runs off the final 10 deliveries, a collapse that proved decisive. For much of the chase, Pretoria appeared in control, but Stubbs’ arrival in the 16th over changed the script. He tore into Gideon Peters for 21 runs in the 18th over before maintaining the pressure alongside Breetzke. After 12 came off Lungi Ngidi’s penultimate over, Stubbs finished the job with back-to-back sixes off Bryce Parsons to send the Sunrisers camp into celebration. Sunrisers Eastern Cape, coached by Adrian Birrell, have now featured in all four SA20 finals, winning three of them — a remarkable record that underlines their dominance in the competition. Also Read: Suryakumar Yadav is limitless again in time to save India’s World Cup dream For Ganguly, it was another painful final defeat on South African soil. After losing the 2003 World Cup final as India captain, the former India skipper has now endured heartbreak as the first Indian head coach of a T20 franchise in an overseas league. His tenure as team director with Delhi Capitals has also seen final losses in both the IPL and the WPL. Birrell hailed his team’s composure under pressure. “It was a hell of a final. For Dewald to play as he did and for us to hold them to 158, then chase at 13 an over in the last few overs, I’m incredibly proud,” he said. Stubbs, leading the side in his first season as captain, was equally thrilled. “I’m so stoked. We stayed calm, waited for momentum, and once it came, we ran with it,” he said. Pretoria skipper Keshav Maharaj admitted the defeat would hurt. “It’s disappointing. When two batters get set and take the game deep, it hurts. We have to reflect and rectify if we want to win trophies,” he said.(By PTI Inputs)