Simelane and Ackerman star as Dolphins seal win over Titans

Marques Ackerman’s superb 92 with the bat and a match-winning spell from Andile Simelane guided the Hollywoodbets Dolphins to a thrilling victory over the Momentum Multiply Titans in their CSA 1-Day Cup clash at Hollywoodbets Kingsmead Stadium on Thursday night.

The Dolphins posted 281/9 before Simelane’s four wickets and tight support from veteran spinner Imran Tahir ensured the hosts secured the win in a lightning-affected encounter.

The home side were put into bat and lost an early wicket when Tshepang Dithole was trapped in front for a duck by Duan Jansen in the fourth over with the score on 12.

Despite the early setback, Slade van Staden and Jon-Jon Smuts rebuilt well. Van Staden ended the tenth over with a boundary to push the Dolphins past the 50-run mark with the pair taking the score to 50/1, Van Staden on 24 and Smuts on 22.

Smuts’ innings came to an end in the 11th over when he top-edged a delivery from Gerald Coetzee and was caught at fine leg for 22 off 29 balls, leaving the Dolphins 53/2.

Van Staden and Ackerman then built the foundations of the innings. After 15 overs the Dolphins had moved to 68/2 and the pair continued to build momentum. The hundred came up in the 20th over, with Ackerman taking advantage of Andile Phehlukwayo, while the partnership also reached a 50-run stand as the Dolphins closed the over on 103/2.

Van Staden brought up a composed half-century off 64 balls, striking seven fours to register his second consecutive fifty in the competition. At the halfway stage the Dolphins were 128/2, with Ackerman well set alongside him.

Ackerman soon followed with a milestone of his own, reaching 50 from 51 deliveries with three fours and a six. The Dolphins’ momentum continued as they moved to 150/2 in the 29th over, while the pair also celebrated a 100-run partnership off 110 balls.

The stand was eventually broken in the 30th over when Van Staden was well caught by Keegan Petersen for 64 off 79 balls, an innings that included nine boundaries. The Dolphins were 162/3 at the time.

Wickets began to fall more regularly after that. Andile removed Bryce Parsons for seven as he was caught at fine leg, leaving the Dolphins 184/4 in the 33rd over.

Ackerman and Gomolemo Phiri pushed the scoring again, taking the Dolphins beyond 200 with 15 overs remaining. However, Ackerman’s excellent innings ended on 92 off 72 balls, with eight fours and two sixes, when Daayyan Galiem produced a superb catch at short fine leg to deny him a century. At the end of the 37th over the Dolphins were 212/5.

The hosts were 232/5 after 40 overs but the Titans struck back through Jansen a little while later, who bowled Phiri for 31 with the score on 242 in the 42nd over.

Late contributions helped maintain momentum. The Dolphins reached 250/6 in the 44th over, before Eathan Bosch was caught at deep midwicket for 25 as the score moved to 265/7 after 46 overs.

Further late wickets slowed the finish. Simelane was caught for 14 off 24 balls, while Prenelan Subrayen fell for five as the Dolphins slipped to 276/9 in the final over.

Tahir ensured a strong finish by striking the final ball for four, lifting the Dolphins to 281/9 from their 50 overs, setting the Titans a target of 282 for victory.

TheTitans faced a revised target after lightning interrupted the contest at Hollywoodbets Kingsmead Stadium, with the match reduced to a 20-over chase of 165.

The Dolphins made an immediate breakthrough when Ottneil Baartman struck with the first ball of the second over, removing Lhuan-dre Pretorius to give the hosts early momentum. The Titans’ problems deepened shortly afterwards when captain Rivaldo Moonsamy was bowled by Simelane for just one, leaving the visitors under pressure in the PowerPlay.

Simelane proved instrumental through the middle and death overs. Showing composure under pressure, the seamer produced an outstanding spell of 4/29 in his four overs, consistently breaking partnerships and preventing the Titans from building sustained momentum in the chase.

Leg-spinner Tahir complemented the effort superbly. After an expensive outing in the previous match, Tahir responded with a masterclass of control, finishing with 2/10 in four overs.

Both Keagan Lion-Cachet and Lesego Senokwane were bowled by the leg-spinner as Tahir strangled the scoring during a crucial phase of the innings.

Baartman’s spell cannot be understated. The seamer picked up the two big wickets of Pretorius and Donovan Ferriera in his four overs that cost just 22 runs.

The Titans slumped to 87/7, effectively ending their hopes of a successful chase. A late counterattack from the lower order briefly threatened to close the gap, with Dayyaan Galiem (20), Phehlukwayo (26), Jansen (23*) and Coetzee (20) all scoring at better than a run a ball.

However, Simelane returned to defend 22 runs in the final over and held his nerve to secure the victory, ensuring the Dolphins closed out a 12-run win via the DLS method after a match that was dramatically reshaped by the weather.

Score

Hollywoodbets Dolphins 281/9 (M Ackerman 92 S van Staden 64 G Phiri 31 D Jansen 3/54)

Momentum Multiply Titans 152/9 (A Simelane 4/29)

Dolphins won by 12 runs (DLS Method)