Klaasen magnificent innings boost Titans against Boland

Proteas star Heinrich Klaasen struck a ferocious half century to boost the Momentum Multiply Titans to 169/4 in their 20 overs of their T20 Challenge clash against Goldrush Boland at SuperSport Park in Centurion on Wednesday night.

It is a strong total, as the game was reduced to 15-overs-a-side after the start of play was delayed by 80 minutes due to rain.

Klaasen, in his first game for the Titans this season, was the star for the hosts as he took some time to get going, but eventually teed off and powered his way to an impressive unbeaten 71 off 32 balls, cracking five fours and five sixes along the way.

Cameos from Rivaldo Moonasamy, 38 off 21 (4x4; 2x6), Donovan Ferreira, 23no off 13 (4x4), and Sibonelo Makhanya, 20 off 11 (2x4; 1x6) also aided the hosts batting effort.

At the start of play Boland won the toss and chose to bowl, with them managing an early breakthrough as Keith Dudgeon had Lhuan-dre Pretorius (3) trapped LBW in the second over with the score 10/1.

Moonsamy then took centre stage as he battered Dudgeon for two sixes, one over deep square leg and the other over the bowler’s head, as 16 came off the fourth over, followed by three fours in a row off Imran Manack’s fifth with another 16 added to take them to 51/1.

Ferisco Adam’s was introduced in the final over of the powerplay and immediately made his mark by bowling Moonsamy and caught Keegan Petersen (8) off his own bowling to reduce them to 52/3 at the end of the powerplay.

In the eighth over Boland suffered a massive blow as Adam’s went off injured, which removed their strike bowler for the rest of the match.

Makhanya was looking in the mood, as he crunched Aya Gqamane for a six and four, but then hit Manack straight to Grant Kaplan at deep backward square leg to leave the Titans in a spot of bother on 77/4 after nine overs.

But the final five overs of the innings were complete carnage as they went for 81-runs, as Klaasen and Ferreira got stuck in, including Klaasen launching two sixes and two fours in Gqamane’s 13th over that went for 25 runs.

Boland now have a stiff target to try and chase down and they will have to be positive from the start if they want to win the match.

MOMENTUM MULTIPLY TITANS: Lhuan-dre Pretorius, Rivaldo Moonsamy, Keegan Petersen (capt), Heinrich Klaasen, Donovan Ferreira, Sibonelo Makhanya, Dayyaan Galiem, Andile Phehlukwayo, Corbin Bosch, Roelof van der Merwe, Tsepo Ndwandwa

GOLDRUSH BOLAND: Grant Roelofsen, Pieter Malan, Clyde Fortuin (c) (wk), Gavin Kaplan, Michael Copland, Ferisco Adams, Keith Dudgeon, Glenton Stuurman, Imraan Manack, Aya Gqamane, Siya Mahima