Narrow loss for Titans in rain-affected game

Titans went down by a narrow, two-run margin to Cape Cobras in the rain-affected opening match of the Momentum One Day Cup in Centurion.

Titans were facing a revised target of 199 off 48 overs after a rain interruption during the Cape Cobras innings resulted in the loss of two overs. Titans had a poor start, and double strikes from pacers Beuran Hendricks and Charl Langeveldt, in the fifth and eighth overs respectively, soon had the side reeling at 20 for 4.

The Titans middle-order, however, fought back and two partnerships in particular - between Roelof van der Merwe and Graeme van Buuren for the fifth wicket and later between Mangaliso Mosehle and David Wiese for the seventh wicket - revived their chase.

The fifth-wicket stand added 65 in a little more than 14 overs, helping Titans consolidate. Van der Merwe struck 41 off 61, while van Buuren chipped in with a 37-ball 30. But both batsmen fell in successive overs, before Mosehle and Wiese took charge of steadying the side. They scored at a fair clip, adding 70 at nearly six runs per over but like the previous pair, they too were out within a short span.

Wiese fell to Hendricks with Titans still needing 28 off 59 balls and Marchant de Lange and Rowan Richards hit out to bring the side to within seven runs of the target. However, Rowan fell to Langeveldt in the 42nd over and Justin Kemp got No. 11 batsman Ethy Mbhalati out in the 43rd to signal victory.

Earlier, Cape Cobras made a strong start after opting to bat, before losing their way in the middle overs. Andrew Puttick and Dane Vilas added 59 runs in just under ten overs, but after their dismissals, the next most substantial partnership for Cape Cobras was a 36-run stand between Omphile Ramela and Stiaan van Zyl.

Van Buuren's left-arm spin, introduced into the attack in the 35th over, reaped immediate results. He had Yaseen Vallie caught off the third ball of the over and followed it up with the wicket of Dane Piedt in his next over. Van Buuren's spell of 4.5 overs yielded four wickets for 17 runs and he was named Player of the Match for his all-round display.