Flat track leads to run-fest, but Cobras find their rhythm

Warriors 525/7 (Ackerman 146, Price 99, Seyibokwe 69)

Cape Cobras 567/7 (Ramela 170, Puttick 124, Smith 63, Mgijima 54) Match drawn

EVEN if there were four more days remaining in this Sunfoil Series clash at Newlands, it would be hard to imagine the players fashioning a result, such was the dominance of bat over ball.

One thousand and 92 runs were scored over the past four days for the loss of just 14 wickets. There’s no doubt the Warriors bowlers breathed a sigh of relief when umpires Marais Erasmus and Patrick Jele called off the contest in the final session yesterday after they had toiled for 188 overs.

There has been plenty of talk within South African cricket that bowlers need to work harder for their wickets on unresponsive surfaces in order to prepare themselves for the rigours of Test cricket. Newlands curator Evan Flint and his ground staff certainly took this viewpoint to heart.

Ultimately though, the major benefit the Cobras can take from this outing is the fact that they have answered their coach Paul Adams’s call for the senior players to start leading the way. Captain Omphile Ramela (170 off 370 balls) and veteran Andrew Puttick (124 off 320 balls) both struck centuries and crafted a 266-run opening partnership. It was painful to watch on occasion due to the lacklustre strike-rate, but it was essential not only in the context of this match but also given everything that has been happening behind the scenes in the Cobras camp.

It also allowed Jason Smith and Aviwe Mgijima to play a bit more expansively due to the follow-on already having been averted when they batted.

“For us it was a lesson in practising our patience, in terms of making sure to understand what pressure we were under, and when to transfer it...” said Adams. If there was any doubt about young Smith’s talent, the strapping 21-year-old all-rounder once again provided a glimpse into the future with a confident innings. Not content to eat up time, Smith always looked to keep the scoreboard moving and used those long levers to despatch the part-time offspin of Eddie Moore with disdain en route to his third score in excess of 50 in three matches.

The Cobras are also happily contemplating the recent development of Mgijima. After being poorly managed over the past few seasons here in Cape Town, the UWC right-hander has flourished now that his role has been defined.

Mgijima is being selected as a specialist middle-order batsman after previously playing as an all-rounder and the 28-year-old has repaid the selectors’ faith with two consecutive half-centuries.

The Cobras are back out on the Newlands paddock later this week when they host the Titans.

Hopefully there will be a surface that offers the bowlers just a little bit more seam movement since the defending champions crushed the previously high-flying Dolphins by an innings and 38 runs at the weekend. –