Lubbe lifts Dragons against Titans in rain reduced clash
The Momentum Multiply Titans will need 144 runs to beat the NWU Dragons in a rain reduce clash CSA One-Day Cup match at SuperSport Park. Play will resume at 15:30 local time. The match has been reduced to 29 overs.
North West Dragons posted 167 for 8 in 42 overs before rain brought their innings to an early close in Centurion. Sent in to bat, they made a shaky start when Meeka eel Prince was bowled in the first over, and the top order stalled under a superb new ball spell from Dayyaan Galiem, who delivered four consecutive maidens and removed Prince to leave the Dragons 2/1. Duan Jansen added to the pressure by dismissing Ludwich Schuld for 13, reducing the visitors to 14 for 2 as Janneman Malan endured a long scoring drought, taking 32 balls to get off the mark.
Captain Wihan Lubbe once again carried the innings, counter attacking brilliantly to break the early stranglehold. After a cautious start, he launched the recovery with a six and four off Jansen, followed by a burst of boundaries off Lizaad Williams that shifted the momentum. Lubbe reached his half century from 41 balls and went on to make 67 off 65, striking seven fours and two sixes in a commanding innings that kept the Dragons afloat.
Malan, who battled through a scratchy opening phase, eventually compiled 31 from 77 balls, but the innings lost shape once Neil Brand entered the attack. Brand bowled Malan in the 29th over and removed Lubbe shortly after, halting all momentum and exposing the middle order. From 109 for 2, the Dragons slipped to 140 for 6 as Lesiba Ngoepe, Ruan de Swardt and Onke Nyaku fell in quick succession. Jansen returned to dismantle the tail, taking two wickets in two balls to finish with 3 for 32.
Dominic Hendricks held the lower order together with an unbeaten 26 from 49 balls, but with partners running out and the Titans’ spinners tightening the screws, the Dragons managed only a single run in the final over before rain forced the players from the field and ended the innings at 167 for 8.
The Dragons will turn to their bowlers to defend a modest total in a shortened contest. With their previous match against Western Provice abandoned due to a power failure, the visitors will need some bowling match the stay in the hunt for a playoff spot.