It doesn’t look good for the Dolphins, especially after one of their poorest bowling displays somehow saw them fail to defend 178 against the Cobras on a slowish Kingsmead wicket.
To make matters worse, the Lions had earlier jumped into third place on the table, with a five-run win over the second-placed Warriors. That sees the Dolphins now needing to win both their final matches of the T20 Challenge, and hope for things to go their way around the country.
Coach Grant Morgan has again and again lamented his side’s efforts in the field, but yesterday may take the cake for the most abject of displays. Given the double header, which saw the Lions and the Warriors square off on the same wicket that the Dolphins and the Cobras did duty on later, it was obvious that spin would play a major factor for the second contest.
The Dolphins, aware of this, went with Keshav Maharaj, Imran Tahir and Prenelan Subrayen with the ball, hoping that their dozen overs would snuffle the hard-hitting Cobras into submission, and wrest a much needed victory for the Durbanites.
Alas, Proteas star Imran Tahir continued his off-colour form in coloured clothing, leaking 38 runs in his full quota of overs. That skipper Morne van Wyk kept him on for the full haul showed just how desperate the Dolphins were for the leggie to do well, but he is yet to hit his straps this season.
Maharaj, back in the side after his Test jaunt in Australia, fared slightly better with figures of 2/27, but he was powerless to stop a charge led by Richard Levi for the Capetonians.
Levi, a battering ram of a man at the crease, bludgeoned 54 off 31 balls, and that broke the back of the Dolphins challenge. By the time the opener departed, dismissed by the expensive Tahir, the writing was on the wall for the hosts.
Dane Vilas, back from Proteas’ drinks duty, helped himself to 54 not out, and enjoyed the cavalier company of Kieron Pollard, whose 31 not out came off 21 balls, with three sixes deposited around Kingsmead.
The Dolphins’ bowlers thus wasted a fine batting effort, led by the mercurial Kevin Pietersen, whose 79 off 51 balls had given much optimism to the decent Durban crowd that turned up in hope of a home win to stay interested in the competition.
Khaya Zondo (40 not out) and evergreen Morne van Wyk (44) chipped in for the Dolphins, as they amassed what looked a healthy 179-run target for the visitors. But, their bowlers let them down, and they go to East London in midweek on a wing and a prayer, their destiny no longer in their hands.
Earlier in the day, the Lions looked to have wasted an excellent start with the bat (76 for the first wicket), as they were bowled out for 157, with one ball left in their innings. But, some tenacious bowling upfront, particularly by Hardus Viljoen (3/16) and Eddie Leie (3/28), saw them somehow strangle the form team in the competition, and prevail by just five runs.
The Warriors had come into the contest on the back of four straight wins, but their colours were lowered by a Lions’ outfit playing for survival. Skipper Aaron Phangiso employed some imaginative fields and spontaneous bowling changes, and he was backed up by a nerveless display in the field by his men.
The win means the final week of round-robin action will be very interesting. The Titans are still perched on the top, and the Warriors are comfortable in second, but the Lions and the Dolphins, and the late-charging Cobras, all have a keen eye on the final play-off spot.
The Dolphins go to the Warriors on Wednesday, knowing that it is sink or swim time, while the Cobras host the Knights and the Lions face the Titans in Pretoria.