Ken Borland

The DP World Lions men’s team dismissed World Sports Betting Western Province for 191 on the final day to seal an outstanding 125-run victory over their old rivals in their CSA 4-Day Series match in Johannesburg on Sunday.

Western Province had been set a target of 317 for victory and resumed on the fourth morning on 88 for three. Fast bowlers Tshepo Moreki and Codi Yusuf each took a wicket in their first overs of the day as the visitors suddenly found themselves 92 for five.

The DP World Lions had to work their way through some lower-order resistance from Western Province as George Linde and Mihlali Mpongwana (25) added 47 for the sixth wicket and Linde and Onke Nyaku (33) then put on 49 for the seventh wicket.

At 188 for six 40 minutes after lunch, #ThePrideOfJozi would have started to feel some concern with 129 needed for victory, but Moreki made the key breakthrough when he produced a snorter of a delivery to have Linde (29) fending a catch to gully.

Lutho Sipamla, who had earlier dismissed Mpongwana caught in the slips, then wrapped up the innings with three wickets in an over. The Proteas seamer jagged a delivery back into Nyaku to send his leg-stump tumbling, Mthiwekhaya Nabe (0) was then caught behind by wicketkeeper Connor Esterhuizen, and Jody Lawrence (0) fell to a magnificent, diving one-handed catch at gully by Josh Richards.

That left Sipamla with impressive figures of four for 51 in 15 overs, while the admirable Moreki finished with four for 44 in 19 overs.

The comprehensive victory by #ThePrideOfJozi, their second in a row at the DP World Wanderers Stadium, came despite being bowled out for a low score in their second innings.

The DP World Lions top-order was blown away on the third morning as they staggered to 45 for eight at lunch. That they eventually reached 121 all out was thanks to Delano Potgieter, whose 54 mirrored his matchwinning efforts against Western Province in last season’s CSA 4-Day Series final, and someone in the lower-order once again digging in to provide crucial support.

On this occasion it was Moreki, who batted for more than two hours in scoring 23 and adding 77 for the ninth wicket.

The DP World Lions were still able to set a daunting second-innings target thanks to the considerable lead of 195 they had on first innings.

Yusuf rent the Western Province middle and lower-order asunder as his fabulous five for 71 in 18.5 overs saw them bowled out for just 208 in their first innings. Moreki and Sipamla chipped in with a couple of wickets each.

The DP World Lions had batted impressively in their first innings, having won the toss and elected to bat first.

It was a grind on the first morning as captain Dominic Hendricks and Mo Manack reached 60 for one in 27 overs at lunch, but there was a change of gears after the break, with Manack (64) and Zubayr Hamza (77) both stroking fluent half-centuries.

The DP Wold Lions were in a powerful position on 268 for three at the end of the first day, and the ever-present Hendricks soldiered on to an epic, magnificent 161 not out. The left-hander batted for over nine hours and faced 370 deliveries in a defiant innings that laid the platform for the Pride’s victory. While he largely stayed in his bubble, Hendricks pounced on the loose ball and he also struck 21 fours and was particularly good on the cut and driving down the ground.

Bjorn Fortuin struck a quickfire 38 not out before the DP World Lons declared at the lunch break on the second day.

The commanding victory, and a haul of 23.46 bonus points, means #ThePrideOfJozi are the new log-leaders and they will be looking to build on their lead in their next game, which is also back at the DP World Wanderers Stadium, against the Dafabet Warriors from Eastern Province from Thursday.

In the old days, many metres of newsprint would have been used to try and answer the question of why the Joburg Super Kings, despite finishing in the top four of all four editions of the SA20, have not yet been able to proceed to the final.

These days, the post-mortems will mostly be done in digital form, computer codes leading to text on some kind of screen.

The Joburg Super Kings’ 2026 campaign came to an end at SuperSport Park on Thursday night as they were well beaten by 36 runs by the Paarl Royals in the SA20 Eliminator. Once again they had fallen short and coach Stephen Fleming, at the helm for all four tournaments, admitted to an “empty feeling”.

Having won the toss and sent Paarl Royals in to bat, but allowing them to post a fine total of 210 for five, and then slumping to 103 for six in reply, it is not that difficult to pinpoint where this season’s push for the final was derailed.

Especially when one considers the Super Kings went into their last fixture without their regular captain, Faf du Plessis, and experienced stars like Rilee Rossouw, Reece Topley and Donovan Ferreira. Injuries and the comings-and-goings of players meant 17 different people took the field for them during the season, so they never really became a settled outfit.

“We’ve had players down, and experienced ones at that, which meant there were guys who had to play at a level they have never been at before and it was asking a lot of them to rise to the challenge. They didn’t respond tonight, but I’m proud of the way they stepped up in Paarl to get into the playoffs,” Fleming said after the loss.

Even though they conceded 210 for five, Joburg Super Kings were by no means out of the contest at the midway point.

It was a fine effort by Paarl Royals, but a curious innings because even though such a big score in a knockout match is always daunting, one felt the Boland side had left a few runs on the table.

Lhuan-dre Pretorius was the top-scorer with a commanding 51 off 34 balls, but he did not seem to have hit top gear yet, seemingly setting his stall to bat deep, when he ran himself out (helped by an excellent piece of out-fielding by Matthew de Villiers) in the 11^th over.

There were four other very useful contributions in the Paarl innings: Kyle Verreynne lashed 30 off 15 balls at the start to ensure they had a brilliant powerplay, scoring 61 for one in the first six overs; Dan Lawrence kept the momentum going and had set up a big finish with his 36 off 23 deliveries; and Sikandar Raza (35 off 19) and Asa Tribe (30 not out off 16 balls) provided the big finish with 62 runs scored off the last five overs.

But when the SuperSport Park pitch is as true and well-paced as it was on Thursday, no total is safe if a batter gets in, stays in and goes deep; if one of the Super Kings could score a quickfire 80 and the rest bat around him, then 211 was certainly not out of reach.

But the brilliant Royals attack, led by Hardus Viljoen (4-0-24-3), gobbled up four wickets in the powerplay and some patrons had not yet finished their dinner when the result became fait accompli with the dismissal of Dian Forrester for just three leaving JSK on 103 for six after 13 overs, needing 108 runs off the last seven overs.

Wiaan Mulder deserves credit for showing plenty of fight as he stuck around for three-quarters of an hour to score 41 off 27 balls, while tailenders Duan Jansen (18* off 12) and Nandre Burger (17* off 11) helped themselves to 36 unbeaten runs off the last 23 deliveries.

But shorn of too many inspirational players, there was to be no miracle for Joburg Super Kings.

“I don’t want to call myself old,” Keshav Maharaj says in a light-hearted aside moments after being named the Proteas Players’ Player of the Year at the recent Cricket South Africa awards evening. But at 34-years-old, the left-arm spinner undoubtedly plays a key role as a figure of wisdom and maturity in a team that is going through a period of transition.

Complicating this time of change for those who play in both red and white-ball formats, as Maharaj does, is the fact that the Test, ODI and T20 squads are all in very different places.

South Africa’s Test team is fourth in the ICC rankings, but is currently in seventh position in the World Test Championship and are seriously short-changed in terms of opportunities to play the five-day format. The ODI team is third in the rankings, boosted by their encouraging semi-final appearance in the 50-over World Cup last year, but questions remain over senior players like Quinton de Kock, Anrich Nortje and Rassie van der Dussen and the lure of T20 leagues.

The Proteas recently achieved their best showing in an ICC global event when they reached the final of the T20 World Cup in the West Indies, but they are only ranked sixth in that format, with consistency being their main issue as the squad is constantly rotated.

Maharaj, as one of the leadership inner core (he has led the Proteas in seven ODIs and five T20s), says however that he feels South Africa are holding steady if not progressing, thanks to the refreshing influence of some new talent and the continued drive of the seniors.

“We have a good blend of youth and experience and we are finding a way to navigate not only playing international sport but also the transition period we are obviously in,” Maharaj told sportsboom.com.

“It’s not easy when you’re trying to blood talent, but there’s stability in the core, some continuity, we are finding combinations so we don’t have to suddenly look for those at World Cups. There’s role clarity from the coaches and we have two brilliant leaders in Temba Bavuma and Aiden Markram.

“I don’t want to call myself old, but for us older guys it’s not always easy with new families that you see for two weeks and then you’re away for eight weeks. But we still love what we do, we are still motivated, patriotic and passionate about what we can do for the country. That’s what spurs us on.

“So with that senior core and how quickly the youngsters are coming through, it’s encouraging that we are still producing results. And the enjoyment of playing together shows too, we work as one unit, motivated to win in all three formats,” Maharaj said.

In terms of personal motivation, Maharaj is probably the complete left-arm spinner already, but he is constantly at work, tinkering and massaging his game. Dedication and work-ethic are his trademarks and in the last season he took 26 wickets in 17 ODIs, conceding just 4.21 runs-per-over; 13 scalps in 10 T20s at 6.88 runs-per-over; and he was the player of the series in the recent Tests in the West Indies, taking 13 wickets in the two matches, at an average of just 16.07.

“I love what I do and I just love the game, so I am still trying to get better and working really hard. I just keep trying to evolve whether that is mentally or in terms of tactics, or subtle changes to my bowling. That includes my batting even though that is yet to pay dividends and the form comes and goes. In cricket, 1+1 doesn’t always equal 2, that’s the way the game goes,” Maharaj chuckled.

“But I just try to be one step ahead. The easy part is getting here, the hardest thing is to stay here. So it’s not about bowling for two hours in the nets, it’s about those six-hour shifts trying to figure out your game. Because out in the middle you are responsible for your own destiny. You have to self-learn because you are alone in the middle, it’s all you, the batter and the ball.”

Like an actor ascending to the lead role, Kwena Maphaka made the famous DP World Wanderers Stadium his own stage on Sunday as he bowled the Pride to a Super Over victory over old rivals World Sports Betting Western Province in their CSA T20 Challenge match.

After a rain-interrupted game was tied during the regular 20 overs each, Maphaka defended 10 runs in the Super Over, against two experienced internationals in Kyle Verreynne and George Linde, conceding just nine runs. The 17-year-old, still in school doing his matric year at St Stithians, bowled beautifully full and straight, and was in no way overawed by a task that has turned more experienced bowlers into jelly.

It meant back-to-back one-run wins for the DP World Lions men’s team as they also edged the Momentum Multiply Titans by one run on Friday night in a thrilling Jukskei Derby. The two sensational wins mean the Lions remain second on the log, well in-touch with the leaders, the Dafabet Warriors.

Western Province decided to bat first, but the DP World Lions bowlers were wonderfully disciplined and accurate, restricting the visitors to 127 for nine.

Pacemen Lutho Sipamla (4-0-20-2) and Codi Yusuf (4-0-28-2) were the bowlers who did the most damage, but fellow seamers Maphaka (4-1-27-1) and Evan Jones (3-0-20-1), and spinner Bjorn Fortuin (4-0-22-1) were all excellent too.

But the afternoon thunderstorm that covered a large tract of Johannesburg then arrived at the DP World Wanderers Stadium between innings and definitely did not help the Lions.

After an hour-long delay, the Lions were set a revised target of 81 in 11 overs and were going well on 27 without loss in 3.5 overs, needing just 54 more to win off 43 balls, when the threat of lightning forced the umpires to suspend play again.

After 25 minutes, play resumed with the DP World Lions set another revised target of 52 in seven overs, meaning they needed 25 off 19 balls. That was then whittled down to eight runs required from the final over, and then one run from one ball. But veteran WP seamer Wayne Parnell bowled the last ball exactly where he needed to with his tight off-side field, and Reeza Hendricks (12) was caught at extra cover. That left the scores tied, which was why there was a Super Over to decide where the four log points were going.

Ryan Rickelton and Jones managed to get 10 runs off Parnell, and then Maphaka stepped up and delivered an over that was worthy of the cacophonous acclaim from the DP World Wanderers Stadium, worthy of the brass band in attendance and not vuvuzelas.

The #PrideOfJozi were sent in to bat by the Titans in Friday night’s game and were in early trouble on 54 for four in the ninth over. But a partnership of 81 off 57 balls between Wiaan Mulder (48) and Mitchell van Buuren (37*), and then the big finish provided by Delano Potgieter’s 32 not out off just 15 deliveries would have had Lions fans celebrating from Sandton City to the Oriental Plaza to Walter Sisulu Square.

Having posted 183 for five, the DP World Lions then had the mettle and the execution to keep the Titans to 182 for six.

The Titans chase revolved around Rivaldo Moonsamy’s 88 off 62 balls, but Codi Yusuf had him caught at midwicket in the 17^th over for the crucial breakthrough.

Maphaka then only conceded four runs in the 18^th over, while claiming the wicket of the dangerous Dayyaan Galiem, and the pace and skill of Yusuf and Kagiso Rabada (4-0-24-1) then finished the deal.

Fortuin was once again outstanding with two for 23 in his four overs.

The Pride will be back in action again on Saturday as they take on the AET Tuskers from KwaZulu-Natal Inland on Saturday at the DP World Wanderers Stadium.