Warriors claim two wickets before lunch

The DP World Lions were 46 for two in reply to the Dafabet Warriors’ first-innings total of 305 at lunch on the second day of the CSA 4-Day Series final at the Wanderers in Johannesburg on Thursday.

The visitors are well placed with the Lions still 259 runs in arrears, having lost their experienced pair of skipper Dominic Hendricks (4) and Zubayr Hamza (6).

Matthew Boast, the leading wicket-taker in the competition this season with 38 scalps, added another to his collection when he had Hendricks well caught at third slip by Matthew de Villiers after he pushed forward to a delivery that left him.

It was De Villiers’s first action in the match after he replaced Warriors’ opener Modiri Lithako as an injury substitute.

Hamza began cautiously, taking 19 balls to get off the mark, before he pulled a long hop from medium-pacer Patrick Kruger for four. He then attempted a similar shot to a delivery outside his off-stump but was only able to cloth the ball to Boast at mid-on.

The best batting from the Lions came from opener Richard Seletswane who struck six fours in his unbeaten 31. Seletswane, who turns 21 on Saturday, looked in good touch, stroking some fine cover drives.

Earlier, the Warriors’ first innings was wrapped up by the Lions in four overs after they resumed on their overnight total of 292 for eight.

Unbeaten centurion JP King had time to swipe Wiaan Mulder over the midwicket boundary to bring up the half-century partnership with Wesley Bedja before Bedja sliced Codi Yusuf to cover and then King himself fell, caught behind by wicketkeeper Connor Esterhuizen chasing a wide one from Mulder.

King’s innings was largely gritty and occasionally explosive with his 123 coming in 230 balls and including 12 fours and four sixes. The Warriors’ innings was dominated by centurions King and Jordan Hermann with tailender Bedja the next highest scorer with 17.

Mulder, who turned 28 today, was comfortably the Lions’ best bowler with 3/48 off 21 overs with Delano Potgieter also effective, taking 3/34 in 12 overs.

DP WORLD LIONS: Dominic Hendricks(c), Richard Seletswane, Zubayr Hamza, WandMakwetu, Wiaan Mulder, Connor Esterhuizen(wk), Delano Potgieter, Bjorn Fortuin, Codi Yusuf, Beyers Swanepoel, Siya Plaatjie

DAFABET WARRIORS: Jordan Hermann, Modiri Litheko, JP King, Matthew Breetzke, Sinethemba Qeshile(wk), Senuran Muthusamy(c), Patrick Kruger, Aphiwe Mnyanda, Mathew Boast, Wesley Bedja, Gideon Peters