Levi entertains Cobras faithful with big hits
Dolphins 134/6 (20 overs) Cape Cobras 137/1 (16.4 overs) Cobras won by 9 wickets
RICHARD LEVI may have his problems at international level, but in domestic cricket, there are few bowlers that can contain his swinging blade.
The Dolphins were the latest to feel his full force when the Cape Cobras opener powered to an undefeated 80 from just 53 balls (7x4, 3x6) to hand the Cobras a nine-wicket RamSlam T20 victory. It formed a large part of a match-winning 115-run partnership with Dane Vilas (43 not out off 37 balls).
If there were any national selectors present at Newlands yesterday, they would surely have been scratching their heads as to why the former Wynberg Boys’ High prodigy simply can’t carry his form to the highest stage. Levi was recently dropped from the Proteas T20 squad for the upcoming Pakistan series.
There were no signs of confusion from Levi at the crease. Instead, there were only confident movements, highlighted by positive footwork towards the ball. It helped him to either power the ball through the off-side along the ground or lift the ball aerially into the long-on region.
The Dolphins certainly missed their star seam bowler Kyle Abbott, who was busy picking up the Man of the Match award for a sparkling performance on his Test debut at Centurion. Without Abbott, the visitors opted to exploit Levi’s vulnerability against spin by opening with former SA Under-19 off-spinner Prenelan Subrayen.
The ploy kept Levi quiet for one over, but that was only the prelude to a pyrotechnics show that kept the Newlands faithful royally entertained. He was particularly severe on Robbie Frylinck, smashing the former Lions mediumpacer for 17 runs in one over, which included successive fours and a six.
Levi enjoyed a bit of good fortune later on in his innings when the Dolphins’ English import Ravi Bopara dropped a regulation catch at deep mid-wicket. But the horse had basically bolted at that late stage, especially with Vilas providing able support to Levi.
The Cobras wicket-keeper has put a lean patch in the latter half of the Sunfoil Series behind him to play a couple of attractive cameos already in this year’s T20 competition.
Vilas was not as brutal as his batting partner, but he was instrumental in keeping the scoreboard ticking over with good running between the wickets. He also showed, though, that when he needed to find the boundary, there was very little effort required by playing good cricket shots.
The Dolphins’ total was below par on a good batting surface, and would actually have been less had it not been for the generous fielding efforts of the Cobras and a plucky half-century from Bopara (60).
Paul Adams’s Cobras side acknowledge they are not the best fielding unit around, but they will need to drastically improve this area of their game ahead of tougher contests. Twenty20 matches are often decided off the last ball, so every single is important, and judging by yesterday’s fielding performance, they should be glad their bowlers have the skills to get them out of a predicament.
The lapses started with the very first ball of the Dolphins innings when Owais Shah spilled a regulation chance at slip off Charl Langeveldt’s bowling. Khaya Zondo’s edge flew straight through the Englishman’s hands. Shah was one of the main culprits on the day, also diving over a couple of balls in the inner ring which could easily have been stopped.
However, these lapses and a disciplinary error from leftarm pace bowler Beuran Hendricks, when he overstepped the popping crease before bowling Vaughn van Jaarsveld (36 off 42 balls), proved inconsequential on a day when the Cobras were simply too strong for their opposition.
Their bowling unit had done the early hard work, with Langeveldt (2/32) and Hendricks (2/34) providing the crucial breakthroughs, but it was more the accuracy of Johann Louw and Dane Piedt that created the pressure on the Dolphins batsmen that had the telling effect. Seamer Louw and spinner Piedt conceded just 19 and 18 runs respectively.
It has been a good weekend for the Cobras, with two wins after an opening loss to the Lions, and they will take great confidence from getting their campaign back on track.