Titans in survival battle in Momentum One-Day Cup
Another weekend of mixed success for the Titans in the Momentum One-Day Cup put Mandla Mashimbyi's men in a position where they would have to fight for a spot in the play-off rounds of the tournament and probably could no longer qualify for a home semi-final.
With just two league fixtures left in the Momentum One-Day Cup, the Titans are in trouble and they will not only have to win both of their remaining games, but also have to hunt bonus points if they still want to qualify for the play-offs.
After the past weekend’s mixed success, in which Grant Thomson and his men lost to the Warriors in Benoni on Friday night, but fortunately managed to beat the Lions in Johannesburg on Sunday, they are currently fifth on the log.
Although the Titans’ batsmen – after been sent in to bat first by the Warriors captain Edward Moore when he won the toss – scored the biggest total of the season and a very defensible 331/4 in Benoni on Friday night, it was the bowlers who disappointed with their performance.
Only Imran Manack could feel satisfied afterwards with his bowling performance of 2/48 in 10 overs. The rest was simply too expensive and allowed the men from the Eastern Cape to reach the winning target with the second-last ball of the match.
Sunday in Johannesburg Thomson won the toss and elected to field first.
Superb bowling by Manack (2/38 in 10 overs) and Alfred Mothoa (3/36 in 10 overs), assisted by Dayyaan Galiem (1/31 in 8 overs) and Khwezi Gumede (1/43 in 9 overs) limited the Lions to only 205/7 in their 50 overs.
Then it was the turn of Aiden Markram (100 off 109 balls), assisted by Thomson (48 off 69 balls) and veteran Farhaan Behardien with an unbeaten 29 off 38 balls to clinch the victory in the 45th over.
Fortunately, the draw for their last two games is such that the Titans’ fate is still in their own hands – except for possible weather influences.
The top four teams in the tournament will qualify for the two semi-finals and the Knights (15 points) is currently in the fourth log position, only one point ahead of the Titans (14 points). However, the Titans’ final game in the league stage will be against the Knights this coming Sunday in Centurion.
Before that, they will have to play on Wednesday in Benoni in another home game against the Cape Cobras (8 points), who is currently last on the log.
So, if Thomson and his men win both of these games, they should finish at least fourth and thus qualify for the semi-finals.
The Warriors (currently third with 19 points) have already played nine games and will complete their league commitments against the Cape Cobras in East London on Saturday.
If the Cape Cobras can beat their Eastern Cape neighbours in that game, the Titans will even be able to finish third on the log, provided they win both their remaining games and also earn at least one bonus point in the process.
Ultimately, there is even a theoretical chance that the Titans could still qualify for a home semi-final. But for this scenario they will also need bonus point victories, while the Lions (second with 22 points) must lose both of their remaining games against the Knights and the Dolphins (first with 30 points), while the above-mentioned favourable result between the Warriors and Cape Cobras will also have to materialize.
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