Ken Borland

HARARE – Martin Vorster was on a rock-solid two-under-par for his round after his first seven holes on Friday, but a raucous run around the turn in which he picked up four birdies and then an eagle helped catapult him to the top of the leaderboard after the second round of the FBC Zim Open at Royal Harare Golf Club.

The Mossel Bay representative began his round on the 10^th hole and made another eagle on the par-five sixth hole before parring his way in for a phenomenal 62, his best ever round in his 52^nd Sunshine Tour event. That lifted Vorster to 12-under-par at the halfway mark of the R2.5 million event, one stroke ahead of Darren Fichardt (66) and Michael Hollick (67).

Vorster responded in style to a grungy first round that included four bogeys to offset six birdies. On Friday he made birdies at the 10^th, 12^th and 14^th holes, before his only dropped shot, a four at the par-three 15^th. But the 22-year-old then made sweet music with four straight birdies at 17, 18, one and two, before his eagle at the 475m par-three third.

Veteran Fichardt sounded a warning in the morning about his challenge, firing a six-under 66 that included eight birdies, being joined on 11-under-par by Hollick, who posted a 67 that included a good little run of his own when he birdied four successive holes from the fifth to the eighth.

Anthony Michael also shot a 67 to lie fourth on 10-under-par, while first-round leader Jaco Ahlers slipped back a bit with a 71 that left him on eight-under.

Kieran Vincent was the leading Zimbabwean as his 67 lifted him to six-under-par, alongside South Africans JC Ritchie (69) and Combrinck Smit (70) in the tie for sixth.

The Sharks took 50 minutes to turn from fish into apex predators, but a strong finish to their United Rugby Championship match saw them hammer the Glasgow Warriors 40-12 at Kings Park on Saturday.

The Sharks led 13-7 at halftime, but it had been an arm-wrestle for the home side, and it looked like Glasgow would push them to the final whistle when the Warriors scored three minutes into the second half. In a horror start after the break, the Sharks conceded consecutive ruck penalties and then missed the contest at the five-metre lineout, allowing a relatively easy maul try for the visitors, flank Thomas Gordon dotting down for the second time.

But the Glasgow defence was relatively slow to get off the line and the Sharks began finding the gaps as they cut down on the handling errors, and the fluency of their attack started to become apparent. It started in the 52^nd minute with a well-worked try, slick hands by replacement prop Ox Nche, flyhalf Boeta Chamberlain and fullback Aphelele Fassi sent wing Anthony Volmink finning down the touchline for the Sharks’ second try.

Volmink had scored the first, in the 33^rd minute, when Chamberlain burst through on a wrap-around move and sent the speedy wing racing away.

The Sharks had struggled to get their maul going, partly because Glasgow were allowed to swim up the side, but they got around that by changing the contact point in the 63^rd minute and replacement hooker Bongi Mbonambi powered over for the try.

Neat interplay between forwards and backs then saw Fassi knife through and score to clinch the bonus point with 11 minutes remaining, before the Sharks rounded off the win with Chamberlain producing a precise crosskick for right wing Werner Kok to run on to and score.

Lock Eben Etzebeth, on Sharks debut, was a deserved man of the match, carrying the ball strongly and ruling the lineouts, making some crucial steals.

The Sharks are clearly a dangerous side when they get their attacking momentum going, but they will be disappointed in a first half where they made too many mistakes.

Defensive lapses are also a worrying feature and, having dominated the opening stages and taken a 3-0 lead through a Chamberlain penalty, the Sharks then allowed Glasgow an easy score as Gordon picked the ball up at a ruck and roared away as there was no pillar defence, sidestepping Fassi for the opening try.

Battling to get return from the maul, the Sharks struggled to break down a Glasgow defence who are canny and attack the breakdown hard.

The Sharks will be disappointed they didn’t get more from the referee, but they took matters into their own hands in the second half by just increasing their accuracy, to great effect.

Scorers

Sharks – Tries: Anthony Volmink (2), Bongi Mbonambi, Aphelele Fassi, Werner Kok. Conversions: Boeta Chamberlain (3). Penalties: Chamberlain (3).

Glasgow Warriors – Tries: Thomas Gordon (2). Conversion: Tom Jordan.

It’s not as if the Delhi pitch looked like the surface of the moon and provided extravagant turn or was a green mamba that seamed around, but South Africa’s batsmen still found a way to be bundled out for a miserable 99 in the third ODI against India on Tuesday.

Much credit must go to a superb Indian attack that barely erred in terms of line and length, and thoroughly exploited the reasonable assistance on offer from a pitch that provides a good contest between bat and ball.

Wrist-spinner Kuldeep Yadav, as he often has been against the Proteas, was the most effective of the Indian bowlers as he raked in 4/18 in just 4.1 overs. But the left-armer only joined the attack in the 20^th over, when South Africa were already deep in the mire on 71/6.

Having been sent in to bat, off-spinner Washington Sundar (4-0-15-2) made the initial strike, bowling wonderfully well around the wicket to the left-hander Quinton de Kock and removing him in the third over for just six.

A double strike by paceman Mohammed Siraj (5-0-17-2), removing Janneman Malan (15) and Reeza Hendricks (3), reduced South Africa to 26/3 in the powerplay.

The introduction of more spin brought even more pain for the Proteas as orthodox left-armer Shahbaz Ahmed claimed two wickets and deciphering Kuldeep was out-of-reach for the bowlers.

Heinrich Klaasen battled on for the Proteas, scoring 34 off 42 balls, before he was undone on the back foot – like many of his colleagues – and bowled by Shahbaz.

Marco Jansen was the last man out for 14 as South Africa were left on their lowest ever ODI score against India, and their second-worst first-innings effort in all ODIs, only their 83 all out against England in 2008 being lower.

The Proteas’ focus is clearly on the T20 World Cup and giving players game time, with Temba Bavuma and Tabraiz Shamsi again sitting out as they continue to recover from illness. Keshav Maharaj has now caught the bug and he sat out Tuesday’s game, David Miller captaining the ODI side for the first time. It is also the first time in ODI history that three different captains have been used in a three-match series.

Lungi Ngidi, Jansen and Andile Phehlukwayo were brought in for the decisive third ODI.

After losing twice to the Stormers in January and April, the Bulls had to jack up their ability to turn their pressure into points according to captain Marcell Coetzee, and he is confident that their finishing is now on a par with their hosts ahead of their United Rugby Championship final in Cape Town on Saturday.

The Bulls lost 26-30 to the Stormers at Loftus Versfeld in January, a 20-minute purple patch giving them a 26-18 lead with 12 minutes left, but they frittered away their advantage. Then, in Cape Town in April, the Bulls were outscored two tries to one in a 17-19 defeat as the Stormers’ defence showed none of the little losses of concentration that their archrivals did.

“Execution was the difference in those matches,” Coetzee said. “We had a lot of opportunities and we could have sealed the deal. There were a lot of chances that we did not take.

“But the Stormers did, like they did in their semi-final last weekend against Ulster. That’s what makes them dangerous: They take their chances to the best of their ability.

“But we’ve got better at that too and we are more clinical now. So I would say the execution of our game-plans is at an equal level for both sides.

“There was huge jubilation after beating Leinster, but what we were most proud of was how we implemented our plan on the day with 100% efficiency. We showed we can win an away playoff,” Coetzee said.

With so much riding on the game – not just the previous history between the two great North/South rivals of South African rugby, but also the chance to be the first URC champions – it is unlikely the teams will be able to play with unfettered freedom. Adding to the Test match feel will be the fact that the Stormers will give the Bulls little leeway in the scrums or at the breakdown.

The Stormers have the edge in current Springboks and World Cup winners, and the Bulls will be running to the shelter provided by their experienced, internationally-proven men like Coetzee, Morne Steyn, Bismarck du Plessis, Cornal Hendricks and Arno Botha.

“I remember as a young player playing in finals for the Sharks between 2011 and 2013, there’s immense pressure on you, but you feel safe with guys who have been there and done it before. You feed off that,” Coetzee said.

“And those experienced guys feed off the youngsters’ energy, how much we appreciated being in a final. Guys like Morne and Bismarck, they know what to expect and we know what to expect from them.

“It’s not so much about revenge, but a final will be personal on both fronts and it’s always 50/50 on the day. We will approach the final with the humility and respect it deserves.

“Our job is not done yet, there’s still a lot for us to fix. Our plan worked to perfection but then we let Leinster back in the game at the end. But the Stormers were able to keep their composure towards the end of a tight contest,” Coetzee said.