Wicket spree by captain not enough for Warriors
Smuts fights bad light to draw with Cobras
CAPTAIN Jon-Jon Smuts took a competition best four-wicket haul but it was not enough to prevent the Cobras from drawing their Sunfoil Series match with his Warriors at St George’s Park yesterday.
Set 252 for victory in 69 overs, the Cobras limped to 131 for six wickets when bad light brought an early close to play at 5.10pm, with 11 overs still remaining.
Smuts, so often the hero with the bat for the Warriors, looked determined to pull off a Houdini act yesterday afternoon by audaciously attempting to bowl out the Cape Town visitors in the remaining two sessions of the game.
But it was not to be, as the left-arm spinner eventually took four for 39 in 20.5 overs, to surpass his previous best of four for 74.
That gave him eight wickets in the match, after his four for 38 in the first innings. He bowled in tandem for most of the afternoon with on-loan, unorthodox, left-arm turner Tabraiz Shamsi, who took two wickets.
The Warriors had opportunities to break through even further, but a couple of dropped catches did not do their cause any good.
Cobras first-innings hero Zubayr Hamza scored 41 at the top of the order, while young wicketkeeper Kyle Verreynne stood firm with 30 not out for the visitors through a period when his team had slumped to 94 for six.
Earlier, the Warriors resumed their second innings on 71 for two, with an overall lead of 136, with Yaseen Vallie and Lesiba Ngoepe at the crease.
They only added 14 runs before Vallie was dismissed by Dane Piedt for 24.
Ngoepe followed for 39, just 10 runs later, when he became Dane Paterson’s third and final victim of the innings. Smuts gave the innings some impetus with a well-struck 54 in the middle order.
His runs came off only 76 balls and included six fours and a six.
The Warriors eventually declared their second innings on 186 for nine, with Paterson the leading wicket-taker with three for 31.
The Eastern Cape outfit called time on their dig when Smuts went out to the second delivery after lunch, leaving the visitors the 252 to win in two sessions.
On Saturday, both Pieter Malan and Hamza scored their franchise-bests as the Cobras chipped away at the Warriors’ first innings score of 452 for six declared.
They posted a fine second-wicket stand of 214 runs, which eventually helped the Cobras declare their first innings on 387 for eight, 65 runs behind.
Malan hit 124 off 237 balls with 15 fours. Although it was his 24th first-class hundred, it was only his second at franchise level.
Hamza added 111 (182 balls, 17 fours and a six), a maiden century at this level.
Veteran Justin Ontong scored a quick 59.
Smuts was again the best of the Warriors bowlers.
At Centurion, Jonathan Vandiar and Farhaan Behardien each slammed half-centuries as the match between the Titans and Lions also laboured to a draw on the final day at SuperSport Park yesterday.
The hosts had resumed day four on 50 for two in their second innings and reached 205 for seven before declaring, setting the visitors a target of 250.
They managed to get 80 for two in 22 overs as the match ended tamely.
In yet another draw, but expected at Durban’s Kingsmead, Vaughn van Jaarsveld made an unbeaten half-century in the clash between the Dolphins and Knights.
After the first day was washed out, it was only a three-day affair, with bad light also playing a role in the game.
Only 52.5 overs were bowled on day four yesterday, with the defending champions losing their last four wickets for 44, to be bowled out for 291, with the host replying with 97 for two.