Leus du Plooy and Sinethemba Qeshile mowed down the YesPlay Cobras' bowling attack to lead the Multiply Titans to an emphatic five-wicket bonus point win in their YesPlay Pro20 Cup encounter on Friday evening.
The toss went Donovan Ferreira's way and the Titans captain opted to bowl first. His bowlers restricted the Cobras to 186/4. The hosts made light work of the required target and raced to 190/5 in 14.5 overs to claim victory.
Du Plooy struck an outstanding 28-ball 77 to put the Titans on course to a comfortable victory. He put his destructiveness on show by bashing four consecutive sixes off Jody Lawrence's first over. His entertaining knock ended when he sent the ball straight to Joshua van Heerden at mid-off. The 31-year-old shared a sensational 121-run opening partnership with Qeshile.
The wicketkeeper, who reached his half-century in 20 balls, took control of the innings after Du Plooy's dismissal. Qeshile finished his innings with a brisk 59 from 25 balls (8x4s, 3x6s). The pair was so unforgiving to the Cobras bowlers that they raced to 95/0 in the first six overs. This is the highest powerplay score in the Pro20 Series.
The hosts suffered a bit of a wobble in the middle overs before Dayaan Galiem (12*) and Eathan Bosch (22*) saw them over the finishing line. The Cobras had Raeeq Daniels to thank for the Titans’ momentary loss of momentum.
The pacer was the standout bowler for the Cobras with three wickets for 27 runs in four overs. The 20-year-old claimed the prized scalps of Du Plooy, Qeshile and Dewald Brevis. His wickets opened a small window of hope to the Cobras, but the damage was already done.
Earlier in the evening, the Cobras sandwiched Joshua van Heerden and Eddie Moore's brilliant partnership between a bad start and an unconvincing finish. The duo constructed a 108-run second-wicket partnership that made a score of 200 or more look possible for the visitors.
Van Heerden struck eight fours and a single six on his way to a 37-ball 64. This is his eighth T20 half-century and he faced 26 balls to get to the milestone. The 28-year-old made his intentions clear from the onset. He struck a boundary off the first ball he faced and looked unstoppable thereafter.
Meanwhile, Moore played well for his 62 off 48 balls (4x4s, 2x6s). This is his ninth ninth half-century in the format. The pair fed off each other's energy as they charged at the hosts' bowling attack. The Cobras failed to feed off the momentum generated by the pair for a strong finish.
The loss of momentum was thanks to some brilliant death bowling from Galiem and Bosch. Galiem was the Titans’ most successful bowler with two wickets for 38 runs in four overs. Eathan Bosch and Junior Dala chipped in with a wicket each.
The victory plants the Titans at the summit in Pool A. They will be hoping to carry this form into their next encounter as they begin the hunt for the title. The Cobras, on the other hand, will be keen to bounce back from the loss.