Lhuan-dre Pretorius powered his way to the fastest century ever for the Titans, leading them to a world record run-rate in a List A match.
The runs flowed like the deluge of the previous evening on a record-breaking day for the Northerns Titans at SuperSport Park on Sunday, as they kept themselves in contention for a place in the playoffs of the CSA One-Day Cup by hammering the Eastern Province Warriors by 111 runs on the DLS system.
The heavy rains that fell over the Pretoria region on Saturday night meant the start of play was delayed by an hour due to the wet outfield, the contest being reduced to 43 overs a side.
With the sky thick with cloud and the threat of rain still around, the Warriors could be forgiven for winning the toss and feeling they should bowl first. But the Titans were not in a forgiving mood and they lashed 440 for five in those 43 overs, the second-highest total in the history of the competition. The franchise has scored the four highest totals in the tournament, the record being the 453 for five they smashed against the North-West Dragons in 2021/22, also at SuperSport Park.
But those other three 400+ scores were all made in 50 overs; 440 in 43 overs is a run-rate of 10.23 runs-per-over and that is undoubtedly the highest ever in any sort of limited-overs game in this country that has gone beyond 30 overs. It is quite probably a world record for any match that has gone for more than 35 overs.
Top-scorer Rivaldo Moonsamy has not enjoyed the best of campaigns up till now, scoring just 54 runs in the four innings he has batted, but he returned to form in the most brilliant fashion, belting 126 off just 83 balls, with 15 fours and six sixes.
But, astonishingly, he was not the star of the show. That honour fell to his opening partner Lhuan-dre Pretorius, who raced to his century in just 61 balls, the fastest ever for the Titans. The previous record was the 64-ball ton Farhaan Behardien made against the KZN Dolphins at Centurion in 2014/15.
Behardien was a late developer who played 97 times for South Africa in the limited-overs formats. Pretorius, just 18 years old, is a prodigy who has dazzled in both the SA20 and now the CSA One-Day Cup. The Proteas must surely come calling soon with an eye on the 2027 World Cup.
Pretorius finished with 107 off 69 deliveries, with 11 fours and seven sixes, five of them in the 17th over bowled by Senuran Muthusamy, the international left-arm spinner. The left-hander is by no means just a basher, however. The power is definitely next level, but so are the smarts. He is a clever batsman, always looking to score, and the majority of his sixes were hit with a straight bat and the minimum of fuss or risk.
The opening partnership of 227 off 147 balls by Pretorius and Moonsamy was the best ever at SuperSport Park, beating the unbeaten 218 that AB de Villiers and Gulam Bodi scored in a 10-wicket victory over the Dolphins in 2005/6.
Sunday’s partnership was ended in the 24th over, but the pain certainly did not end there for the Warriors, who did not get the assistance they expected with the ball, but were also poor in terms of their lines and lengths.
Dewald Brevis was also the centre of attention when he was still an U19 cricketer and, after a couple of leaner seasons, he is starting to look closer to the finished article. Incredibly, he struck the ball even cleaner than Pretorius and Moonsamy, and seemed on course to snatch Pretorius’s record for fastest Titans hundred from him just over an hour after he had set it as he raced to 75 off 43 balls.
Brevis stroked six sixes, a few of them quite extraordinary in execution, but then he was trapped in front by medium-pacer Andile Mogakane.
Captain Neil Brand (55* off 34 deliveries) and Sibonelo Makhanya, who came through a tough time with the bat this season with 46 not out off 22 balls, then completed a red-letter day with the bat for the Titans as they plundered 76 unbeaten runs off the last 39 deliveries.
There was much pain and suffering amongst the Warriors bowlers. Alfred Mothoa conceded 89 runs in eight overs, and Siya Plaatjie the same but in just six overs! Muthusamy rebounded well from conceding 30 runs to Pretorius in his second over, conceding only 50 in his other eight overs and getting the wickets of Moonsamy and Dayyaan Galiem (4).
The shellshocked Warriors were predictably always well behind in the chase, although JP King (31) and Matthew Breetzke (94 off 72) made a good fist of things in their second-wicket stand of 65 off 56 balls.
Breetzke impressed again with his poise and controlled aggression, backed by sweet timing as he collected 11 fours and two sixes.
When play was interrupted by the threat of lightning, the Warriors were 204 for five after 28 overs and more than 100 runs behind on DLS. When they returned 45 minutes later, they needed 159 runs in four overs.
Muthusamy (29 off 20) and C.J. King (30* off 12 balls with four sixes) had some fun, but Eastern Province ended on 251 for seven in 32 overs.
Left-arm spinner Roelof van der Merwe took two wickets and conceded just 38 runs his seven overs, and Junior Dala set the tone up front with figures of 4-2-10-0.
The Titans are now on 11 points, just one point behind the Warriors in the third and final playoff place; and Eastern Province may well be joining them on 11 as they are expected to be docked a point for very slow over-rates in this match.
Northerns complete their round-robin campaign with visits to Potchefstroom to play the sixth-placed North-West Dragons on Wednesday and Bloemfontein next Sunday to face the second-placed Free State Knights.
The North-West Dragons will ponder how they managed to throw victory away, while Western Province will be proud of a marvellous fightback in the field as well as a couple of magnificent catches as they won their CSA T20 Challenge Eliminator by 41 runs at the Wanderers on Wednesday night.
Western Province were sent in to bat and only made it to a decent total of 166 for five thanks to a mighty finish from George Linde, who smashed 49 off just 23 balls, with five sixes – three of them in the penultimate over off Kerwin Mungroo. Linde then completed a memorable match for himself by taking three for 15 with the ball, as well as hanging on to a spectacular catch.
Kyle Simmonds took a career-best three for 14 in his four overs, as the duo of left-arm spinners sent North-West crashing from 77 for two to 125 all out.
The Dragons had taken the match by the scruff of the neck as Meeka-eel Prince (25 off 11) and captain Wihan Lubbe (46 off 20) put on a rollicking partnership of 70 off just 30 balls for the second wicket. This came after Beuran Hendricks (2-0-9-2) had removed both North-West openers for two apiece.
Taheer Isaacs top-edged a hook to fine leg, but Janneman Malan hit a fine short-arm jab that was somehow caught by Linde, diving full-length at a wide mid-on for a spectacular one-handed grab.
Prince lost control of a pull shot off Wesley Bedja and was caught at fine leg, but the Dragons only needed 90 more runs at a rate of 7.3 to the over to win.
With skipper Lubbe still at the crease and enjoying tremendous momentum, Western Province needed more wickets quickly.
And North-West proceeded to gift them those wickets with mindless cricket. First Lubbe ran himself out going for a second run to long-on, beaten by a superb clean pick-up and bullet throw from Bedja, and then Lesiba Ngoepe (17) pulled a long-hop from Simmonds to cow-corner.
Simmonds took all three of his wickets in the 11th over as Marco Jansen (9), instead of just trying to push the ball straight down the ground, then tried to drive over midwicket and was bowled, and Bamanya Xenxe (0) was bowled by a peach of an arm-ball.
Linde then took the last three wickets as North-West lost eight wickets for 48 runs in eight overs, Mpongwana taking an incredible one-handed catch, low to his left at slip, to dismiss Kerwin Mungroo for a duck.
The well-balanced Dragons attack had earlier bowled in good areas and justified Lubbe’s decision to bowl first as they restricted Western Province to 101 for five in the first 15 overs. The frustration of the batsmen was most evident in the in-form Eddie Moore’s innings of 15 off 23 balls, which ended in soft fashion when he holed out to long-on against tidy leg-spinner Caleb Seleka (4-0-25-1).
The Western Province top-order is still a little wet behind the ears, and they found themselves bogged down as they could only score 46 for two in the powerplay, compared to the Dragons later on racing to 63 for two.
Mihlali Mpongwana looked good in scoring 24 off 19 deliveries before holing out at deep square-leg off Gideon Peters, who impressed the smattering of spectators at the ground with some genuinely fiery fast bowling which netted him excellent figures of three for 24 in his four overs.
But Linde then hit the ball brilliantly down the ground and over the one short boundary as he blasted a handful of sixes, adding 65 unbeaten runs off just 35 balls with Abdullah Bayoumy (14* off 12).
As good an innings as it was, it did not seem to be enough as North-West were cruising. But then came their spectacular implosion.
Western Province will now take on the Northerns Titans in Qualifier 2 at SuperSport Park on Friday evening, the winners returning to the Wanderers on Sunday afternoon to take on the Central Gauteng Lions in the final.
A Grey Lourie stands sentry as dusk falls over Mapungubwe.
Bird hides have been a staple of twitching ever since the 1880s when watching our avian neighbours rather than hunting them began to become popular.
One of the finest hides I have experienced is the one at the Maloutswa Pan in the Mapungubwe National Park.
This pan is largely ephemeral in nature, although water is pumped into the main pond year round. But in high summer the whole area is a tropical wetland promising magnificent birding.
In late March, the water may be a bit shallower, but the grass is still thick and this provides prime housing for a variety of waterfowl, especially various rallids.
They like the thick vegetation because they can very effectively hide away in it. Which of course makes spotting – and then identifying – these often crepuscular, shy birds which are muted in terms of colour, much harder for hopeful birders.
Fortunately, the digital age has brought with it some most useful tools for the modern birder; electronic gadgets abound and fancy cameras seem more common than binoculars these days.
Social media has also infiltrated birding and it certainly played a major part in me being able to tick off a mega Lifer.
It was my penultimate morning at Mapungubwe and going to Maloutswa had already paid off with a Dwarf Bittern flying first towards and then past the hide, showing the characteristic big, dark stripes down the neck.
I was enjoying watching a Little Egret sitting in a tree on the left of the hide with some Cattle Egrets, its plume waving in the breeze, when some movement below in the thick vegetation on the edge of a bank caught my eye.
It turned out to be a very confusing glimpse of some sort of Rallid, which I could never fully see in the luxuriant grass and there were chicks. Adding to the mystery were the Common Moorhens who were also around with chicks and much more obliging when it came to showing themselves.
The adult of this Mystery of the Marsh (the translation of the Latin generic name Aenigmatolimnas) remained very well hidden, but I did see a couple of the chicks quite well and they had a distinctive black line down their throat.
I was only satisfied a few days later, however, that I had actually seen Striped Crake when social media came to the rescue! I was alerted to the fact that the SA Rare Bird Network site had photos of Striped Crake and chicks from Maloutswa from the same day as my sighting. Looking at the photos (bless you, Kim Porteous!) confirmed my Lifer.
The Striped Crake (Aenigmatolimnas marginalis) is a rare denizen of seasonally-flooded wetlands in east and central Africa and not often seen in South Africa.
I promise there is a Striped Crake in this photo! Look 45 degrees above the water lily, where the muddy bank meets the brown grass …
When one finally tears oneself away from Maloutswa, there is a very productive road back to the Mazhou camp.
This road goes through various environments: there are thick bushes of thorn scrub bordering the Limpopo riverine forest, sparse grassland plains with bare patches, and dry Acacia tortilis (Umbrella Thorn) woodland with bushy clumps of Salvadora australis (Narrow-Leaved Mustard Tree) & Acacia stuhlmannii (Vlei Thorns).
These semi-arid savanna flats are actually the ancient floodplain of the Limpopo River, with alluvial soils, and there is a wealth of birdlife here too on the outskirts of the lush riverine forest belt.
The savanna flats heading to Mazhou campsite, with Impala in foreground and Plains Zebra behind
On this road back to camp from Maloutswa the previous evening, I was fortunate to spot something exciting and special – the Threebanded Courser, using the road as open ground for the nocturnal hunting of invertebrates they specialise in.
This bird is rare and erratic in Southern Africa, found most frequently in lowveld river valleys, loving alluvial soils with plenty of open areas, which the elephants have opened up in the scrub mopane.
Speaking of nocturnal delights, inside the Mazhou Camp, there is a regular European Nightjar, that lies (lengthwise, typical of this species) on the branch of an Ana Tree (Faidherbia albida) during the day.
The most helpful camp caretaker can point it out for you, and he found the Barred Owl, high in an Nyala Tree (Xanthocercis zambesiaca), which had been calling incessantly through all the early hours of the morning on my day of departure.
African Scops Owl is also a regular, with three different individuals around camp on this trip.
Sitting in camp in the heat of the day, through the gaps in the canopy of trees, I saw the massive silhouettes of Marabou Storks against the bright blue sky.
I was surprised that the usually friendly Bushbuck only made an appearance in camp on the third day.
On my final morning, I just caught a glimpse of White Stork flying over the forest. Hearing loud drumming coming from the edge of camp, I managed to find Bearded Woodpecker, a bushveld classic that I am always on the lookout for and a fitting last sighting.
Bearded Woodpecker
The eastern side of Mapungubwe, where the main Leokwe camp is situated, set amongst rocky outcrops, is also most interesting. The small valleys between the outcrops have mopane scrub and mixed woodland and it was on the side of the entrance road to Leokwe that I spotted a Dusky Lark, just chilling, not walking around looking for insects or seeds, or flicking its wings, as if often does.
A family of three Cut-Throat Finch were in a low, scrubby bush nearby, and, handling the rocky slopes with ease were some lovely Klipspringer, again a family of three.
Even when travelling between the Western and Eastern sections of the park, birding is good.
The Den Staat Road is the shorter route, but has been ravaged by floods in recent years and is not always passable. The Maloutswa watercourse actually stretches up alongside the road, in an area known as Leeupan, and driving up as far as I could, I was pleased to see Yellowbilled Stork and Knob-Billed Duck, while Longtailed Paradise Whydah were on the telephones lines as usual.
The other route is longer and more circular, through the Rhodesdrift farmlands and then on to the tar of the R521 and around to the R572.
There are often interesting birds around Rhodesdrift though, and this time Redheaded Finch were spotted, while there was also a big family group of Banded Mongoose.
THE RHODESDRIFT GANG … Banded Mongoose
The R572 runs along the southern border of the park and it is worth keeping an eye open as you drive along because good sightings can still be made.
Sure enough, just before the main entrance, I spotted, from the road, a Martial Eagle inside the park, dismembering some prey item while perched in a dead tree.
Once through the main gate and inside the park, the first stop is the Nungu Waterhole. Basically just a depression between the rocks, this time there was a decent pool of water that had built up from the rains.
This meant there were lots of doves and Cinnamonbreasted Rock Buntings around, as well as a couple of Longbilled Pipit, and the activity encouraged me to stay a while longer than I usually do when there are just some ridges of dry rock to look at.
And I was rewarded when a few small flocks of Burchell’s Sandgrouse arrived, but would only drink for a couple of seconds before flying off again in seeming panic. There were a couple of individuals that visited too, all in all a wonderful sighting of a shy and secretive bird that I had not seen for 17-and-a-half years!
Arriving at Mapungubwe on a warm 30° afternoon, a Gabar Goshawk was the first bird of real interest as it flew with its lunch across the grassland into a dead tree.
A Lesser Grey Shrike was being hassled by a Southern Greyheaded Sparrow, while Carmine and European Bee-Eaters were doing circuits over the grassland and around my car.
Carmine Bee-Eater
I arrived at Mazhou with more than a dozen birds on my list already, and Tree Squirrels, Natal Francolin and Longtailed Starlings politely inspected my campsite as I applied the finishing touches to my abode for the next three nights.
Natal Francolin
My next visitors showed far less decorum. They were fascinated by their reflections on the outside of my kettle, and then one of them stole the lid!
You guessed it – the dreaded Vervet Monkeys.
Having set up camp, there was time for sundowners at Maloutswa, with sporadic Whitefaced Duck flying over and making their beautiful whistled calls. A Woodland Kingfisher was having its evening ablutions by plunging into the water and getting thoroughly soaked.
On the way back to camp, more Starlings were on the road and patches of bare ground, looking for supper, and were joined by Crested Barbet.
Crested Barbet
A couple of Rattling Cisticola were making a real racket before bedtime and a male Chestnutbacked Sparrowlark and the others in his family went running along the road in hunched fashion.
The next morning it was off to the Eastern side of Mapungubwe, where there are fewer trees and less shelter from the searing sun, but thankfully it was a cooler day reaching just 27°.
After the excitement of the Sandgrouse at Nungu Waterhole, it was down into the Limpopo Valley, with a pair of Southern Whitecrowned Shrike standing guard in intimidating fashion in their tree just before the road began its descent.
Kori Bustard
Heading towards the Treetop Boardwalk, a big flock of Wattled Starling flew into the rehabilitating arid thornveld which is next to the riverine woodland, while a Kori Bustard was also strutting around.
Wattled Starlings
While on the boardwalk itself, a Willow Warbler was singing away but stayed deep in the foliage of a Knobthorn (Acacia nigrescens), requiring some effort to see.
A Meyer’s Parrot was more obliging as it was chirping while it munched away on the bladed seeds of the Russet Bushwillow (Combretum heroense).
Once done on the boardwalk, one heads along the road that runs parallel to the Limpopo River for a bit before it climbs through the wonderful rocky landscape up a hill where one overlooks its confluence with the Shashe River. From this viewpoint one can gaze into Botswana and Zimbabwe at the same time, while also looking down on the ubiquitous and fascinating Baobab trees from your elevated perch.
One of these Baobabs was hosting a rather considerable, and messy, nest of thorny twigs – the communal nest of the Redbilled Buffalo Weaver. Amidst the seeming chaos of sticks jutting this way and that, a male was very carefully and delicately placing a single stick very specifically next to the hundreds of others that make up these multi-chambered constructions.
From Confluence one heads back down again towards the Limpopo, through some spectacular buttresses of rock. High up on a shelf in one of the cracks that split these dramatic ramparts, a Mocking Chat sat.
Leaving the fascinating rock formations behind, one heads down to the fertile, beautiful riverine forests along the Limpopo. A little circular route takes one to Poachers’ Corner, where one can park at the bank of the river and gaze across into Zimbabwe just a hundred metres away, with a family of Redbilled Woodhoopoe flying past on this occasion.
Heading away again from the Limpopo, there is a little road that goes off from the Poachers’ Corner loop to Zebra Pan, a beautiful little spot, an oasis from the dry surrounding veld and dust which usually has something interesting around.
On this occasion, a pair of Saddlebilled Stork were digging in a muddy field with the Waterbuck, Plains Zebra, Cattle Egrets and nearby Blue Wildebeest.
Heading up out of the Limpopo River Valley on the Vhembe Road, one starts climbing over the rocky sandstone ridges; a Jacobin Cuckoo flew into a mopane bush on the side of the road, dug around in there for a bit and then emerged with a big cicada.
Closer to Schroda Dam, a group of Common Eland were also frequenting the mopane.
There is another small dam just before one exits via the main gate, another good spot. Some Cape Teal, with unusually black bills, were upending in the water weed, while a Dabchick had young, as did the Whitefaced Ducks. A Greater Kudu was enjoying the sweet grasses around the dam.
Black Crake, Wood Sandpiper, Threebanded Plover and Common Greenshank were the other waders present.
Another lovely drive from Mazhou Camp is the River Road along the Limpopo river bank, through the huge trees of the gallery forest.
There are a couple of spots where the road allows you to scan the actual river. While I had stopped early one morning, several Reed Cormorant, along with a couple of Grey Heron and a few Cattle Egrets, came flying eastwards along the river.
One can actually follow a road along the Limpopo River bank for quite some distance and the striking trees of the riverine forest continue, with a dense grassy understory, all the way to Sanana farm.
Something like a small francolin was on the road ahead of me and then it dashed into the long grass. Drawing alongside, I found it peering at me, before it scooted off deeper into the undergrowth. The plaintive, repetitive whistling of its colleagues could still be heard and helped in the identification of what I had seen as being a Common Quail.
The Sharks have to beat the Bulls and get a bonus point at Kings Park on Saturday if they are to be in the Rainbow Cup final, which means they have to score four tries. That will probably mean they will try to play an even quicker game against the Currie Cup champions, but captain Lukhanyo Am said on Tuesday that they also have to be smart in how they play.
If the Bulls score four tries and get a bonus point then it probably won’t matter who wins the game because their points difference is so much better than the Sharks that the home team would need to beat them by 34 points just to draw level. So Am’s charges can’t just throw caution to the wind and go all-out trying to just score as many tries as possible.
“We’re not going to shy away from our DNA, but the Bulls present a different threat to the Lions and we need to try and find the balance between running, flashy rugby and smart, tactical rugby on the right side of the field. We’ll want to bring energy and continuity and we’ll be trying our best to get into the final,” Am said on Tuesday.
This will be the last time the likes of Am, Makazole Mapimpi and Siya Kolisi will be playing for the Sharks until the end of the chockablock Springbok schedule towards the end of the year. The Sharks do, however, have nine players in the extended Springbok squad and their clash with the dominant force in domestic rugby for the last year will be thrilling.
*Perhaps the biggest surprise after the Sharks officially confirmed on Tuesday that Stormers hooker Bongi Mbonambi will be joining them at the end of the Lions tour was that the Springbok star had held out for so long before signing his new contract.
Mbonambi was already poised to join the Sharks back in March, when his Roc Nation stablemate Kolisi had already been unveiled as a key signing for the Durban franchise.
The talented 21-year-old Fez Mbatha has been the Sharks’ first-choice hooker recently, but Kerron van Vuuren and part-time flank Dylan Richardson have also had plenty of time in the middle of the front row. Former Maties and SA U20 hooker Dan Jooste is also under contract at Kings Park.
Philippians 2:13 – “For it is God who works in you to will [to make you want to] and to act according to his good purpose.”
When you realise that God is at work within you, and are determined to obey him in all things, God becomes your partner in the art of living. Incredible things start to happen in your life. Obstacles either vanish, or you approach them with strength and wisdom from God. New prospects open in your life, extending your vision. You are filled with inspiration that unfolds more clearly as you move forward, holding God’s hand.” – Solly Ozrovech, A Shelter From The Storm
But not living your life according to God’s will leads to frustration as you go down blind alleys in your own strength, more conscious of your failures than your victories. You will have to force every door open and few things seem to work out well for you.
