A clinical bowling display by the Dragons helps them beat the Knights by 109 runs
The North West Dragons bowlers, led by Delano Potgieter who took 4-27, bowled with exemplary control and discipline to dismiss the Itec Knights for 159 and win by a convincing 109 runs in their CSA One-Day Cup at the JB Marks Oval on a sunny day in Potchefstroom.
The Dragons started their defence of 268 perfectly by applying early pressure that led to the wicket of Jacques Snyman whose patience ran out as he dragged a fullish ball by Eldred Hawken back onto he his stumps for a 25-ball 11.
That wicket was quickly followed by another as Gihahn Cloete for 7 (17) tried to reach a full and wide delivery by Kerwin Mungroo only to get an edge through to captain Nicky van den Berg behind the stumps to leave the Knights on 25-2.
Pite van Biljon and Raynard van Tonder formed a partnership of 36 before Delano Potgieter caught the edge of Van Biljon’s bat for 17 (25). Potgieter followed that up with the wicket up Patrick Botha for 11 (20) with a slower ball bouncer that stuck in the wicket, which Botha only managed to drag onto his stumps. Potgieter’s decisive spell continued as he took the crucial wicket of Van Tonder in his next over to leave the Knights reeling at 80-5.
That soon turned into 96-7 as the umpire gave a disbelieving Migael Pretorius out nicked behind off the bowling of Eldred Hawken before he knocked Alfred Mothoa’s stumps over three balls later. There was a small recovery after that before Neelan van Heerden was sloppy in getting back in his crease and was runout by Heino Kuhn for 19 (34).
Potgieter came back into the attack to dismiss Patrick Kruger for 33 (49) who picked out the man at deep midwicket and Mungroo bowled Nhlakanipho Mpungose for 14 (18) to wrap things up. The Knights were unable to put any significant partnerships together or apply any kind of pressure on the Dragons’ bowlers who themselves bowled brilliantly in partnerships.
Earlier in the day the Dragons had won the toss and elected to bat first on what turned out to be a sluggish pitch that offered assistance to the spin bowlers.
A fast-paced 96 by Kuhn and a second successive fifty for Lesego Senokwane looked to set the Dragons up for a score of over 300. However, from a position of 251-5 they collapsed dramatically to lose 5-17 and end up on 268.
Migael Pretorius got the Knights off to the perfect start by dismissing Wesley Marshall for four runs, who had a wild slog across the line against a back-of-a -length delivery and only managed to drag it onto his stumps.
Pretorius quickly followed that up with his second wicket, that of Grant Mokoena who pulled a well-directed bouncer straight to Patrick Botha at deep square leg who took a good catch running forward.
A brilliant partnership of 120 between Senokwane and Kuhn brought the stability the home side needed to lay a strong platform for the batters to come. The partnership wasn’t without its slices of luck, as Monde Maqunqu struck both batters right in front of the stumps on more than one occasion and could count himself extremely unlucky not to have been on the right side of those decisions on what was an impressive debut from the young left-arm orthodox bowler.
Spin reaped reward on a pitch that gripped nicely for the slower bowlers and Patrick Botha was the chief harvester. He broke the vital partnership by dismissing Senokwane, who tamely chipped the ball back to Botha for an easy caught-and-bowled for 76 off 91 balls. It was another marvelous display of batting by Senokwane who also made 79 in the previous match against the Dafabet Warriors.
Botha then got the wicket of captain Nicky van den Berg for 13 who looked to punch the ball through the off side, only for the ball to turn appreciably and take the inner half of the bat and loop up to catching-midwicket where it was comfortably taken by Patrick Kruger.
Senuran Muthusamy, who made an unbeaten 60 in a player of the match performance against the Warriors, then came in and joined Kuhn who had already passed fifty by that time at more than a run-a-ball. He made a sprightly 20-ball 18 before Maqunqu dismissed him for his first wicket in professional cricket. It might not have been his best delivery of the day, a full-toss hit straight to mid-off, but it will be one he will never forget.
Potgieter came in with real intent to lift the tempo of the Dragons. Kuhn looked set to get his sixth One-Day Cup century, but Pretorius came back to get him nicked off to Cloete behind the stumps for 96 off 90 balls.
A superb day for Pretorius continued as he dismissed Shaylen Pillay for one, also caught by Cloete. His two wickets in the 44th over turned the tide for the Knights who were staring at a possible chase of over 300 at that stage.
Alfred Mothoa got his 50th List A wicket when he had Eldred Hawken caught behind for a three-ball duck. At this point the Dragons had slipped from 250-5 to 254-8 in the 45th over.
Pretorius should have had a maiden List A five-wicket haul, but Jacques Snyman dropped a sitter off the bat of Renaldo Meyer at long-on to rob him of that milestone. However, Pretorius still returned outstanding figures of 10-1-36-4 to keep the Knights in the match.
Mothoa dismissed Meyer in the next over; an inside edge onto his stumps off a slower delivery. Delano Potgieter desperately needed support at the other end as he was cruising along, but was left stranded on a 27-ball 29 as Mothoa nicked Mungroo off for a golden duck and his third wicket in the innings.
All the good work the Knights bowlers did to get their side back in the match turned out to be futile as their batters couldn’t keep the momentum going. With this win the Dragons move to the top of the One-Day Cup table while the Knights, who have had a horror couple of seasons, start off their campaign with a loss.
ITEC KNIGHTS - Gihahn Cloete(wk) , Jacques Snyman, Raynard van Tonder, Pite van Biljon, Patrick Kruger, Patrick Botha, Monde Maqunqu, Migael Pretorius, Neelan van Heerden, Alfred Mothoa, Nhlakanipho Mpungose
NORTH WEST DRAGONS - Lesego Senokwane, Wesley Marshall, Grant Mokoena, Heino Kuhn, Shaylen Pillay, Nicky van den Berg (wk), Senuran Muthusamy, Delano Potgieter, Eldred Hawken, Renaldo Meyer, Kerwin Mungroo