A stunning counterattacking century from Bjorn Fortuin helped power the DP World Lions into a position of dominance on 239 for eight in their second innings at the close of play on day three of their CSA 4-Day series clash against the Momentum Multiply Titans at DP World Wanderers on Thursday.
It was a stunning recovery from the Lions who found themselves staring down the barrel on 4 for four at lunch, with Zubayr Hamza, 68 off 103 balls (8x4), starting the fightback before Fortuin took centre stage and hammered 16 fours and two sixes in his 95-ball 116.
That boosted the Lions into a 253-run overall lead when umpires called play for bad light early, and it will be interesting to see whether the hosts declare overnight or try to knock a few quick runs in the morning of the final day before trying to bowl the Titans out.
After tea, the Lions resumed their innings in a difficult position on 99 for five with Hamza and Fortuin at the crease, and they took their side past the 100-run mark before Hamza was bowled by spinner Tsepo Ndwandwa to reduce them to 122 for six.
Codi Yusuf, who scored a valuable 44 in the first innings, again came in clutch for the Lions, this time hitting two fours and a six in scoring 24, and crucially sharing in a 55-run partnership with Fortuin, before he was caught by Dewald Brevis off the bowling of Neil Brand with the score 197 for seven.
That brought Delano Potgieter (12no) back in to bat after he had retired hurt during the day's second session when fast bowler Corbin Bosch hit him on the head with a bouncer.
He resumed on three, but was a virtual spectator as he watched Fortuin dominate a 43-run partnership that powered them over the 200-run mark, before was finally dismissed, caught on the boundary by Keegan Petersen off the bowling of Bosch to make it 239 for eight.
If the Lions don’t declare overnight Potgieter will return along with Tshepo Moreki, who is yet to score, with the duo looking for quick runs on the final morning of play.
Earlier in the day, the post-lunch session began with the Lions in massive strife on 4 for four, with Hamza and Connor Esterhuizen (8) combining for a 37-run fifth-wicket partnership as they tried to rebuild.
However Ndwandwa came into the attack and made the breakthrough when he bowled Esterhuizen, as the Lions slipped to 41 for five.
Potgieter was next in and faced 28 balls in scoring three, but was unable to get out of the way of a short ball from Bosch, with it pinging off his helmet, and after an assessment on the field by the doctor he eventually walked off, leaving Hamza and Fortuin to kickstart a fightback.
In the morning session, the Titans were all out for 302 in their first innings, in response to the Lions' first innings score of 316 all out, before the hosts were stunned by four quick wickets heading into lunch.
Andile Phehlukwayo’s impressive 88 off 154 balls (10x4; 4x6) helped the visitors limit the first-innings deficit to just 14 runs, after they had been in trouble on 132 for six at a stage.
At the start of the day the Titans resumed their first innings on 239 for six, with Phehlukwayo and Bosch (59) at the crease, but they only managed to add four runs to the total before Lutho Sipamla bowled Bosch to end their superb 111-run seventh-wicket partnership.
New batter Dayyaan Galiem (4) didn’t last long, edging Sipamla to wicketkeeper Esterhuizen, as the Titans slipped to 247 for eight and in danger of conceding a decent first-innings deficit.
But Phehlukwayo found good lower-order support from Merrick Brett (13) as they added 21 to the total, and an important unbeaten zero off 16 balls from Ndwandwa, that allowed Phehlukwayo to unleash and add 34 runs for the last wicket before he was bowled by Yusuf.
Sipamla with 4-83 was the pick of the Lions bowlers, while Tshepo Moreki, 3-36, and Yusuf, 2-66, backed him up well.
In the Lions' second innings, the carnage began in the second over when opener Joshua van Heerden (1) was run out by some smart fielding from bowler Galiem, followed by captain Dominic Hendricks edging Galiem to Brevis at gully for a fourth-ball duck off the very next ball leaving them on 1 for two.
In the next over Bosch had Mitchell van Buuren trying to defend a short delivery, only to get an edge to keeper Rivaldo Moonsamy as he departed for a six-ball duck.
In the final over before lunch, Khaya Fakuda became the third duck of the innings as he flicked Brett straight to Phehlukwayo at square leg.
DP WORLD LIONS: Dominic Hendricks (capt), Joshua Richards, Zubayr Hamza, Mitchell van Buuren, Khaya Fakuda, Connor Esterhuizen (wk), Delano Potgieter, Bjorn Fortuin, Codi Yusuf, Tshepo Moreki, Lutho Sipamla
MOMENTUM MULTIPLY TITANS: Neil Brand (capt), Rivaldo Moonsamy (wk), Keegan Petersen, Dewald Brevis, Josh van Heerden, Jhedli van Briesies, Dayyaan Galiem, Andile Phehlukwayo, Corbin Bosch, Merrick Brett, Tsepo Ndwandwa