Ken Borland

Victory over Boland in Paarl at the weekend has ensured our DP World Lions men’s team go into the final week of round-robin action in the CSA T20 Challenge at the top of the log, but it was no cruise for our gutsy Pride.

Having lost the toss, our DP World Lions had to bat second and, after another clinical bowling display, they may have been chasing only 130, but the Boland Park pitch just became slower and lower as the day progressed and #ThePrideOfJozi in the end won with six wickets in hand, but with just two balls to spare.

The hard-fought victory, their fourth in a row, mean they go into Wednesday’s match against Western Province at the DP World Wanderers Stadium with a one-point lead over the North-West Dragons at the top of the log. 

Leg-spinner Junaid Dawood again excelled as he took three for 21 to become the leading wicket-taker in the competition this season, and he was well-backed by our pair of returning Proteas spinners, Bjorn Fortuin (4-0-22-0) and Nqaba Peter (4-0-28-1). Paceman Lutho Sipamla was also excellent with the ball, taking two for 19 in three overs.

Reeza Hendricks then showed his experience and class as he steered the Pride to victory with a fluent 72 not out off just 50 deliveries, a matchwinning effort with the bat. Zubayr Hamza scored 37 and it was their second-wicket stand of 82 in a dozen overs that was the backbone of the successful chase.

While praising the resilience and determination of the team in bouncing back from a poor opening match against the Titans, assistant coach Jimmy Kgamadi says our DP World Lions are still trying to improve with every outing as they look to defend their title.

“As coaches, we are very pleased because we did not start well against the Titans, who hammered us, really. But the team has shown great character to come back the way they have. And also to do it on the road in Bloemfontein and Paarl, to pull those matches through is great,” Kgamadi said.

“Paarl is a difficult place to play because it is very challenging conditions, a very slow pitch. We played three spinners to suit the conditions and that just shows the good depth in the squad, we can play in any conditions.

“For Reeza to avail himself to us is very special, he could have spent time with his family instead. He brings such experience and seniority, and enormous stability to our batting. He also uplifts guys like Zubayr, Wandile Makwetu, Connor Esterhuizen and Mitch van Buuren when they bat with him.

“But we never felt we had it in the bag because Boland bowled and fielded very well and the pitch went very slow, it really was difficult to score. But the guys held their nerve and were able to take it deep,” Kgamadi said.

Now the DP World Lions will be back in home conditions in Johannesburg against a Western Province team who are in sixth position in the standings and so desperately need a win to keep their hopes of being in the playoffs alive.

Our DP World Lions have shown glimpses of their best in each of the departments – the batting against the Warriors in their second game, the bowling in the first half of the innings against the Dolphins and against Boland, and the fielding versus the Knights in Bloemfontein – but Kgamadi is hopeful that #ThePrideOfJozi will be able to put all three facets together in a complete performance against Western Province.

“I’m still waiting for that great all-round performance, when all parts of our game come together. We’ve seen glimpses, but it hasn’t all come together from the first over to the 20^th and I can’t wait for when the puzzle all comes together. But the attitude and energies of the team is certainly up there,” Kgamadi said.

The DP World Lions will be hoping the weather plays along and there are no interruptions to the action in the top-of-the-log CSA T20 Challenge clash between our #PrideOfJozi and the Dafabet Warriors at the Wanderers Stadium on Wednesday evening.

The Lions are still well-placed in second position on the log despite the shock rain-affected loss to the Tuskers in the weekend’s action, while the Warriors come to the DP World Wanderers Stadium as the only unbeaten side in the competition.

The DP World Lions’ last two matches at the Bullring have been affected by the weather and have seen our Pride not being able to produce their best. They scraped a one-run win over Western Province in a Super Over, having been cruising to their target before a rain interruption. The start of their match against the Tuskers was delayed by showers after the toss, and Keith Dudgeon, who used to represent the Pride, then laid waste to the top-order in the sort of conditions seam bowlers dream of having.

But the DP World Lions will be confident that they have the beating of any side in a full 20-over contest, even the in-form Warriors.

Ryan Rickelton, having set alight the SA20, has been the star performer with the bat for our Pride, averaging 41.25 with a strike-rate of 147.32, while he has international-class back-up in Wiaan Mulder, Rassie van der Dussen, Temba Bavuma and Reeza Hendricks.

Kagiso Rabada and Kwena Maphaka may be away representing the #PrideOfJozi on the IPL stage, but the ever-reliable left-arm spinner Bjorn Fortuin will be there to lead the attack, while seamer Codi Yusuf has shown he is a fast-rising talent.

Having suffered a rare defeat, there is no doubt the DP World Lions will be raring to bounce back and produce a dazzling all-round performance to solidify their place in the top two of the CSA T20 Challenge.

After being out of action for three months, it is with great glee that the DP World Lions Ladies team will return to the field this weekend, as they travel to Durban to take on the HollywoodBets Dolphins in both a one-day and a T20 match.

The Dolphins will be tough opponents in the 50-over contest, where they are top of the log, three points ahead of the Titans with a game in hand, and nine points better off than the Lions.

But those tables are reversed in the T20 league. Western Province may be 12 points clear of the DP World Lions at the top of the standings at the moment, but our Pride are second with a game in hand and if they beat the Dolphins and also win their remaining three matches then it is possible for them to defend their title.

Their hosts this weekend have only won two of their six T20 matches this season and are languishing second-from-bottom on the log.

DP World Lions Ladies coach Shaun Pretorius says his team are ready and keen to get the second half of their season going, their last match having been their T20 visit to the Titans on November 19.

“All the hard work has been done in the last few weeks, the ladies have really been grafting and we have had good preparation for this weekend. They are excited to now just go out and jol,” Pretorius said.

“The T20 match is particularly vital for us because we are in a really good position in that competition. In the 50-over league, it’s about making sure we climb the log in our remaining matches, even if it’s just inches at a time. We are still going out to compete, not just to participate.”

The KwaZulu-Natal Coastal side’s reliance on spin at Kingsmead is no longer original and Pretorius said our DP World Lions Ladies are forewarned and well-prepared for the challenge.

“We have worked on plans to combat each of their bowlers and we think they’re going to have their best line-up without their Proteas. That means they will be without their formidable left-arm spinner Nonkululeko Mlaba, so that’s one threat that is away.

“We are aware that spin is their main threat down there and we are also looking at lots of spin-bowling options, depending on what the pitch looks like. The games will be all about those crucial small phases in the game and how we conduct ourselves in them will be the key,” Pretorius said.

The Dolphins will also be missing pace bowler Ayanda Hlubi, while the only member of the Lions Pride on duty for the Proteas Test squad is wicketkeeper/batter Sinalo Jafta. But the highly-promising Karabo Meso is most able to step into her shoes.

Ryan Rickelton, Wiaan Mulder and Mitchell van Buuren will all return to four-day action for the DP World Lions on Wednesday, fresh from their buccaneering batting exploits in the SA20, but the Pride will also welcome back two vital backroom members of the triumphant Sunrisers Eastern Cape to the team for their meeting with the Gbets Rocks in Johannesburg.

DP World Lions head coach Russell Domingo played a key role, as batting coach, in the Sunrisers claiming back-to-back SA20 titles at the weekend, and now he is eager for our Pride to seal a place in the four-day final.

Also returning to the DP World Wanderers Stadium is national Test captain Temba Bavuma, who is over his injury problems and, even though he played just the one game for the Sunrisers, scoring 33, he had an important effect on the happy mood and outstanding culture of the champions’ camp.

Bavuma’s addition nicely makes up for the absence of our Lions’ leading run-scorer in the four-day competition this season, Zubayr Hamza, who is with the Proteas in New Zealand.

The Lions’ two strike bowlers, Tshepo Moreki and Duanne Olivier, are also involved in that Test series.

With Rickelton, Mulder and Van Buuren all consistently amongst the runs in the SA20, it is an in-form and confident home batting line-up that will take the field at the DP World Wanderers.

Rickelton was the leading run-scorer in the SA20 with 530 in just 10 innings for MI Cape Town, who were eliminated before the playoffs. The left-hander was at his best as he scored at a phenomenal strike-rate of 173.77.

Mulder was one of the main reasons the Durban Super Giants reached the final, his 297 runs putting him in the top-10. His tally included three half-centuries, while he scored at a blazing strike-rate of 157.14.

Van Buuren had a solid campaign with the Paarl Royals, making 221 runs at 31.57.

The DP World Lions go into the penultimate CSA 4-Day Series match in third place on the log, but they are just 0.12 points behind the second-placed Warriors and 11.48 points adrift of the leaders, the Titans. So a place in the final and even hosting that five-day match is well on the cards for our Pride.

“It was a great time with the Sunrisers and obviously wonderful to win the trophy again, but now my full attention is on the four-day prize,” Domingo said. “There are two big games ahead for the Lions and we’re obviously missing a few players in New Zealand.

“But it’s very lucky for us to have Temba back, he’s fit and ready to play again and very keen to score lots of runs. Wiaan Mulder is also back after he missed our last game. Both he and Ryan Rickelton had fantastic SA20 tournaments, Mitchell van Buuren did really well and Codi Yusuf bowled nicely too.

“Any cricket played ahead of the four-day restart is good and we’re lucky that we have a few players who have been involved in very intense cricket. They will certainly come in match-ready and I’m really pleased that the Lions guys mostly played very well in the SA20,” Domingo said.

Although the Boland team will be without key players in Shaun von Berg, Clyde Fortuin and Keegan Petersen, who are in New Zealand with the Proteas, most of the rest of their squad would have been able to plan with much forethought ahead of their trip to Johannesburg for the return of red-ball cricket. Fast bowler Hardus Viljoen is the only member of their squad who saw much SA20 action.

“The Malan brothers [Janneman and Pieter], Stiaan van Zyl and Hardus Viljoen – those are all players with international experience and we know the Rocks are a tough unit. They would have worked hard on their skills these last few weeks and they have a lot to play for too, it’s a big game for them as well,” Domingo said, referring to their log-position of sixth, which could leave them flirting with the relegation zone.

Paceman Lutho Sipamla, who has not played a four-day game for the Lions this season due to injury, has been named in the squad and seems almost ready to play, pending the outcome of nets and a fitness test on Tuesday.

DP World Lions squad – Dominic Hendricks (capt), Josh Richards, Temba Bavuma, Ryan Rickelton, Wiaan Mulder, Mitchell van Buuren, Wandile Makwetu, Bjorn Fortuin, Delano Potgieter, Malusi Siboto, Codi Yusuf, Muhammad Manack, Connor Esterhuizen, Lutho Sipamla.