Ken Borland

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.

The Boland Rocks surrendered their CSA T20 Challenge title in maudlin fashion on Wednesday night as they bowed out at the semi-final stage, losing by 20 runs to the KZN Dolphins in Potchefstroom.

Having sent the Dolphins in to bat, the excellent Boland bowlers dominated all but the first five overs and the last over of the innings as they bowled KZN out for 146 in the final over.

Openers Grant Roelofsen (26) and Keegan Petersen (25) added 42 off 35 balls up front, but the Dolphins then crashed to 124/8. KZN captain Prenelan Subrayen hit 22 off 11 balls at the death to boost his team to a total that they felt they could defend on a two-paced pitch.

After Eathan Bosch had Leus du Plooy caught behind for a first-ball duck, Janneman Malan gave Boland a good start, scoring 31 off 29 balls to take them to 40/1 in the powerplay. But the arrival of spinners Subrayen and Jon-Jon Smuts began a sorry tale for the Rocks.

Left-arm spinner Smuts struck with his first delivery, beating the dangerous Clyde Fortuin in the flight and bowling him for 7. Malan could only score six runs off the 10 balls he faced from the spinners, before being outdone by off-spinner Subrayen’s arm ball and being neatly stumped by Roelofsen for 37.

Subrayen (4-0-18-3) and Smuts (4-0-17-2) then reduced the Dolphins to 65/6 in the 13^th over.

Farhaan Behardien (31*) and Hardus Viljoen (22 off 18) tried valiantly to rescue the sinking ship, but Boland limped to 126/8 in the end.

The Dolphins now meet the Northerns Titans in Saturday’s final, and they will bring a proper all-round bowling attack to the contest.

Bosch’s control set an excellent tone up front as he finished with 1/22 in his four overs and Ottneil Baartman is also a primary weapon, taking 1/29 in four on Wednesday.

Daryn Dupavillon’s pace makes him a proper threat, and he bowled just one poor over, which cost 16 runs, but bowled well at the death with Baartman to ensure the Dolphins’ dominance was reflected in the final result.

Bamanye Xenxe, a real talent unearthed by this tournament, was the best of the Boland bowlers with 4/34, but he did concede 17 off the last over.

Leg-spinner Shaun von Berg took 3/22 in his four overs, but a couple of his wickets were gifted by the Dolphins hitting long-hops to fielders. His dismissal of Andile Simelane for a duck, beautifully stumped by Fortuin, was a masterful piece of cricket, however.

Ferisco Adams once again showed his T20 skills by taking 1/19 in four overs.

The Northerns Titans became the latest team to be stung by the irrepressible bowling and fielding of the Boland Rocks as the Paarl-based side shocked the tournament favourites by beating them by 15 runs in the CSA T20 Challenge final at St George’s Park on Sunday.

Chasing a modest 139 for victory, Northerns slumped to 29/3 inside the powerplay, but put themselves back into position to win with two handy middle-order partnerships.

Heinrich Klaasen (17) and Sibonelo Makhanya (37) added 35 for the fourth wicket as Northerns recovered to 64/3 at the halfway stage.

Klaasen was then beaten in the flight and bowled by left-arm spinner Siyabonga Mahima, but Makhanya and Donovan Ferreira made them favourites as they added 35 in 4.1 overs, needing just 40 more off 34 balls to win.

A run out changed everything though as Ferreira was caught short by Ferisco Adams after confusion with Makhanya, and Hardus Viljoen then took a stinging return catch next ball to dismiss Aya Gqamane (0), the last of the recognised batsmen.

Boland were sharp at the death and the Titans closed on 123/9.

The spin of Mahima (4-0-22-2) and Imraan Manack (4-0-14-2) obtained bite out of the St George’s Park pitch and fatally undermined the Northerns’ chase, while fast bowler Viljoen took 2/14 in three overs.

Having elected to bat first, Boland lost wickets at regular intervals, but the fact they got to 138/6 loans credibility to the importance of having an anchoring batsman in T20 cricket.

Captain Pieter Malan, the leading run-scorer in the tournament, scored 71 of those runs off just 56 balls, batting through to the penultimate over in a matchwinning effort.

Viljoen provided a late boost to the innings by blasting 32 not out off just 16 deliveries.

Spinner Tabraiz Shamsi, helped by the tremendous frugality of Aaron Phangiso, who conceded just 13 runs in his four overs, once again ruled the middle overs with 3/20, while seamer Lizaad Williams was also good with 2/30.

But the Boland Rocks, the new franchise in the blossoming cricket area of Paarl, were worthy and popular champions.

St George’s Park was the principality of South Africa’s Prince of Leg-Spin, Shaun von Berg, on Tuesday as he consigned the Central Gauteng Lions to defeat against the Boland Rocks in their CSA T20 Challenge match.

Von Berg took a devastating 3/14 in his four overs as the Lions, chasing 161 to win, were bowled out for 116 in just 17.2 overs.

Although Joshua Richards was trapped lbw to the first ball of the innings from left-arm spinner Siyabonga Mahima, the Lions were well-placed on 46/1 after six overs as Reeza Hendricks and Shane Dadswell added 46 off 38 balls.

But Dadswell (29) was bowled by Von Berg’s first ball, mowing across the line, and the seasoned spinner had Mitchell van Buuren caught behind next delivery with a classic leg-break.

Once Mahima (4-0-20-2) removed Reeza Hendricks for a determined 46 off 39 balls, the Lions were 94/6 and Hardus Viljoen and Ferisco Adams, who both also took two wickets in two balls, ran through the rest of the batting line-up.

Captain Pieter Malan was largely responsible for leading Boland to 160/4 after they had been sent in to bat, compiling a steely 71 off 48 deliveries.

Adams (30* off 23) and Christiaan Jonker (20 off 15) provided a good finish to the innings as Boland had enough on the board to be rewarded with an invaluable bonus point.

In the afternoon game, the rampant Western Province side roared to an 84-run win over the North-West Dragons, their fourth consecutive triumph also earning them a bonus point.

Chasing 165, Beuran Hendricks ran through the North-West top-order with superb figures of 4-20, the joint best in the competition so far.

With leg-spinner Junaid Dawood claiming 3/22 in his four overs, North-West were shot out for just 80.

Captain Wayne Parnell took 1/13 in three overs with the ball and two fine catches, one of them a full-length diving effort to remove the dangerous Delano Potgieter off Hendricks.

The left-hander had earlier struck a ferocious 33 not out off just 17 balls to lift Western Province to 164/8, after an incredible collapse in which they lost six wickets for 25 runs left them on 134/8 with just two overs remaining.

The collapse was largely caused by brilliant left-arm spin from Senuran Muthusamy, who also took 4/20, and came after a solid platform had been laid by Jonathan Bird (53 off 44) and Dane Vilas (31 off 20).