The North West Dragons had to suffer a second loss in a row in the CSA 4-day series after the ITEC Knights beat them by 10 wickets at the JB Marks Oval this past weekend.
The match only lasted 3 days with the Dragons batsmen getting bowled out cheaply in both innings for 237 and 197 respectively.
Photos: Wouter Pienaar
The Dragons had to follow on as well in pursuit of the Knights first innings score of 418 and in both innings struggled to get going.
The second innings opening partnership looked promising as Wesley Marshall (33) and Lesego Senokwane (24) put on 64. The next 8 wickets though fell for 133 runs as the Knights bagged a comfortable win. Left arm seamer, Mbulelo Budaza, took 4/64 in the first innings and former SA u.19 pace bowler, Gerald Coetzee, took 4/47 for the Knights in the second innings.
The defeat leaves the Dragons with much work to do especially in the batting department. No batsman could truly occupy the crease for long periods, with wickets at regular intervals curtailing any momentum. Nicky van den Bergh’s 42 and Johannes Diseko’s unbeaten 41 in the first innings was the highest scores by any Dragons batsman as no one could score a half-century.
The Knights on the other hand had a field day with the bat in their first innings, compiling a score of 418 all out. This was largely due to a brilliant 234 run partnership by centurions, Pite van Biljon (127 off 194 balls) and Patrick Kruger (192* from 216 balls) who took the game away from the Dragons.
The Dragons had the Knights in a spot of bother at 101/4, but this changed dramatically when Van Biljon and Kruger occupied the crease. This was also Kruger’s highest score in first class cricket and only his second century in this format.
The Dragons bowler’s struggled to keep the pair quiet as the pressure was released with regular boundaries. Lwandiswa Zuma felt the brunt of the willow as his figures of 1/94 went at a high economy rate of 6.71. Senuran Muthusamy (3/115) from 31 overs and Delano Potgieter (2/63) from 17 overs were the pick of the Dragons bowlers.
The Dragons next take on the Gbets Warriors at the JB Marks Oval in their third match of the competition from 18-21 November. Both teams will want to get on the winning track, after suffering big losses. The Warriors lost by an innings and 20 runs against the Lions this past week at home.
