Titans triumph on windswept wicket

Hollywoodbets Dolphins 162/3 Multiply Titans 165/6 Titans won by four wickets

DAYYAAN Galiem and the "R5.5-million-man" Donovan Ferreira, stayed cool, crucially kept an eye on the wind direction at a blustery JB Marks Oval in Potchefstroom, and dragged the Titans over the line in a pulsating CSA T20 Challenge final on Saturday.

It was Galiem who clipped the fourth ball of the final over through midwicket for four to seal victory for the Titans, but it was his partnership with Ferreira for the sixth wicket – worth 63 runs – that turned a fluctuating match in their team’s favour.

Whereas the Dolphins built their innings around a 115-run second wicket partnership between Keegan Petersen and Jon-jon Smuts, the Titans showed off their depth with the bat.

Theunis de Bruyn (32), Neil Brand (18) and Jiveshan Pillay (18), all made important contributions on a day when the young superstar, Dewald Brevis failed, making just two before falling to a legside trap.

Galiem and Ferreira got together in the 14th over with the Titans still needing 64 runs to win.

They didn’t rush their charge, with Ferreira, known for his big hitting and also composure, biding their time.

A strong wind, which had blown away a storm that threatened to take the match into Sunday, worked in their favour.

“We needed 38 runs with four overs to go and the wind was pumping one way and they still (had two overs to bowl) in that direction , and luckily it worked out,” Ferreira, who made 40 off 25 balls, said afterwards.

The key overs were the 16th, by Daryn Dupavillon, which went for 16, and then the 18th by an off colour Ottniel Baartman in which the Titans scored 11 runs – using that wind.

Despite Ferreira being superbly run out by Marques Ackerman in the last over, Galiem stayed cool, clipping the winning runs and setting off delirious celebrations for those clad in blue, including a boisterous bunch of supporters in the old main stand.

The Dolphins fought mightily after winning the toss and choosing to bat.

They lost the tournament’s leading run-scorer, Grant Roelofson, off the first ball of the match, but then Petersen, who wasn’t considered for the first few matches and then Smuts got together for an excellent partnership, which formed the backbone of their innings.

Petersen, who worryingly from a Proteas stand point was taken off the field on a stretcher after injuring his hamstring during the Titans innings while making a stop on the boundary, batted superbly in scoring 63 off 51 balls, hitting six fours and two sixes in the process.

Smuts made 69 off 50 balls with eight fours and a six, but his wicket in the 19th over proved a turning point. Galiem delivered a series of wide slower balls, one of which led to Smuts’s dismissal, and conceded just one run in the process.

That over was equally as important as Galiem’s unbeaten 32 off 22 balls, ensuring the Titans had another trophy to celebrate.