Despite 2 days of rain, Dolphins knew spin duo would do the job on Kingsmead deck
There may have been two days of rain, but Dolphins captain Marques Ackerman said he knew that on a typically dry Kingsmead deck, his spin duo of Prenelan Subrayen and Senuran Muthusamy would still win them the game in the 4-Day Domestic Series final which ended in Durban on Monday.
And so it proved in extraordinary fashion as off-spinner Subrayen (10 for 80 in 60 overs) and slow left-armer Muthusamy (nine for 91 in 42.5 overs) shared an unprecedented 19 wickets (the other dismissal was a run out) as the Titans were hammered by an innings and 76 runs, including being bowled out for their lowest ever total – 53 – in the first innings.
“I’m being dead honest when I say that even with only three days left in the game, not once was there any talk about the draw. We said from the start that we were going to win the match and not share the trophy, that was the unbelievable positive energy and mindset in the changeroom. Everyone was just so goal-driven and with so much bad light usually in play here, we normally only play three days so we knew how to win.
“We knew on this pitch that if we batted well then that would bring our spinners into the game, and so credit to Sarel Erwee, whose hundred put us on the front foot. The quality of our spinners was vital and their control was exceptional. They are world-class and I hope that gets recognised soon. Their groupings are so good, they test the batsman’s technique all the time, both edges, and they have impeccable skills,” Ackerman said on Monday.
The 25-year-old Ackerman said the Dolphins’ first outright win in the franchise four-day competition, in the last game of the franchise era, was a credit to all the players, staff and administrators at Kingsmead.
“This win was all about the people who do all the admin, the people who look after the things behind closed doors, the staff who look after all the small things, the groundsman and our sponsors who are the best, and not just the players. We’re all really stoked to finish the season this way and for the trophy not to be shared is a great end of the Dolphins journey.
“We knew we had the talent to win the four-day competition but we knew we had to put a lot of hard effort into it, we had to make changes. That was the little flame, we didn’t even have a team song, so we created the team culture we needed in red-ball cricket. I don’t think many people realise how hard it is to win the four-day tournament,” Ackerman said.