The picturesque Newlands Cricket Ground in Cape Town will host a showdown of epic proportions when the North West Dragons face the undefeated Western Province in the CSA One Day Cup final on Saturday, 28 October.
The North West Dragons have played out of their skins to reach the final and are now just one win away from lifting the trophy. A magnificent 7-wicket win against the Warriors last Sunday, 22 October, confirmed a guaranteed second spot on the table and a place in the main event.
The Dragons needed to win with a bonus point in what was essentially a semi-final. Their bowlers came to the party and skittled the Warriors out for 94 before achieving an easy win. Ruan de Swardt was the chief destroyer with career-best figures of 4/17 in 10 overs.
North West Dragons head coach Craig Alexander was ecstatic after the win but says all focus will now shift to the final. “It was a great performance from the boys. We knew what we needed to do, and it made things easier from an energy and body language point of view. The bowlers were amazing on Sunday. Everyone fired on all cylinders. Ruan de Swardt reaped the rewards of Migael (Pretorius) and Kerwin’s (Mungroo) opening spell in the powerplay. It was almost a perfect bowling display. Our fielding was also amazing, especially the run-out from Ruan de Swardt,” added Alexander.
It didn’t look too rosy for the Dragons when they lost their final home game of the tournament to the Lions by 75 runs, though. Luckily, the Titans also lost to Western Province the same evening, while the Warriors also came unstuck against the Rocks.
That set up the memorable must-win match for the Dragons against the Warriors at St George’s Park.
It has come full circle for the Dragons, who started their CSA One Day Cup campaign with a 6-wicket loss against Western Province in Potch. They have learnt lessons since then, with the men in maroon winning four crucial games to reach the final.
Now, they have an opportunity to meet WP again and give their opponents the same medicine in their backyard.
“I am looking forward to the final, and I believe we have kept our best performance for the final on Saturday. I am happy with where the players are mentally. The guys are hungry to bring the trophy to Potch,” stated Alexander.
The final starts at 10:00.
