Natal in strong position with one day to go

Tentative batting by Griqualand West helped Natal end the second day with a lead of 63 runs and all 10 wickets in hand to give the visitors the best chance of forcing a result on Sunday.

When bad light forced the close 10.2 overs early, Natal were 85 without loss in their second innings. Griquas, who resumed on 32 for one, were dismissed for 280 in reply to Natal's first innings of 258.

The home side's batting problems began in the fourth over of the day's play when Bruce Tucker fell to a return catch to Andrew Tweedie having added just a single to his overnight score of 15.

Johan Louw and Grant Elliott weren't together long before Tweedie struck again to trap Louw in front for 13.

An hour before lunch, Elliott and Loots Bosman were separated when the latter was bowled by Wade Wingfield for 19. Five balls later Griquas were reduced to 83 for five when Wingfield had Pieter Koortzen leg-before for four.

But any hopes Natal had of wrapping up the rest of the innings in similar fashion gradually faded as Elliott and captain Wendell Bossenger presented straight bats - and very few pads - to the increasingly frustrated bowlers.

Their partnership grew to 120 and lasted until half-an-hour before the end of the extended second session, when Elliott drove to mid-on, called for the short single and was run out by Gulam Bodi's direct hit on the stumps to make it 203 for six. Elliott was at the crease for almost three-and-a-half hours in which he faced 170 balls and hit 13 fours and a six in his gritty 83.

Adrian McLaren then helped Bossenger knock up a quick 41 for the eighth wicket, of which McLaren scored 27 off 16 balls with six fours. But the rest of Griquas' tail failed to wag and they were dismissed during the extra half-an-hour before tea was taken with a marginal lead of 22 runs.

Bossenger played an admirable skipper's innings and was undefeated on 74 after three-and-a-half hours in which he faced 153 balls and hit 10 fours. Tweedie maintained a superb line and length, for which he was duly rewarded with the new ball, to take four for 65.