Yet another draw as Cobras and Warriors fizzle out

THE Cape Cobras would have gone to bed on Wednesday evening harbouring ambitions of achieving the first Sunfoil Series victory of the 2017/18 season.

The home side enjoyed a 171-run first innings lead at the start of the final day, and had already claimed one of the 10 wickets needed to set up an interesting finish.

However, Warriors duo Colin Ackerman and Eddie Moore ensured it was merely a pipedream. The duo shared a 214-run second-wicket partnership that left the captains with nothing else but to shake hands at the tea interval.

The Cobras required early wickets if anything were to happen, but it was not forthcoming. There was a halfchance for home team skipper Dane Piedt at slip during the first session, but he was not able to grasp the opportunity.

After that let-off, there were no further chances with Ackerman and Moore’s broad bats keeping the Cobras at bay until the former was finally dismissed for 105 (190 balls, 16 fours).

Moore, meanwhile, remained unbeaten on 101 off 186 balls. The only bowler to pick up a wicket on the day was Cobras debutant Mthiwekhaya Nabe, who could at least celebrate his maiden franchise wicket.

The Sunfoil Series continues to be an uphill battle for the bowlers with no team able to achieve an outright victory after four rounds of the competition.

Meanwhile, Lungani Zama reports that Cody Chetty produced his finest knock as a franchise player, while Sarel Erwee continued his excellent form of this season, as the Dolphins stood firm and defied the Titans to hold them to a second stalemate inside a month.

As was the case in Pretoria, the Dolphins went into the final day in Maritzburg with two wickets already down, having been asked to follow on by the visitors. Erwee started the morning with intent, clubbing

Tabraiz Shamsi for a six and a four in one over, and generally not allowing the bowlers to settle on a length.

Vaughn van Jaarsveld traded his cavalier strokeplay for a touch of the circumspect, as he and Erwee added 100 for the second wicket. Van Jaarsveld’s lot was 39 but, in the bigger scheme of things, his lowest score of the season was actually his most valuable contribution to the cause. He was undone by a clever Shamsi googly, to be trapped leg-before.

That brought centurions Erwee and Chetty together, with the former continuing to go hard at anything loose, and the latter utilising his rubber wrists to turn decent balls into runs. The Titans were getting increasingly frustrated and their spinners, after a massive workload over two days, started wilting, dropping the odd ball short, and not exerting the same

pressure as the first innings. Erwee bludgeoned his way to a ton off

163 balls, with 14 fours and six into the pavilion.