Border v KwaZulu-Natal Inland – CSA Provincial One-Day Competition, 2012/13 (Coastal Pool) – Match Update – Border win by 15 runs
A timely century at the top by Bevan Bennett set Border up for a 15-run win over KwaZulu-Natal Inland in their list A match during the ongoing CSA Provincial One-Day Competition, played at the Buffalo Park in East London on November 25.
Border won the toss and chose to bat first, with openers Vuyisa Makhaphela (51) and Bevan Bennett (120*) putting their team in a dominant position from the start, with a partnership worth 111 runs. Their stand laid a solid foundation for the remainder of the batting order, and despite the dismissal of Makhaphela in the 24th over, caught and bowled by Brad Moses, Bennett remained firm at the crease, and saw the innings through until the end.
Burton de Wett only managed a 15-run contribution before Tyler Lortan trapped him lbw, but his successor Justin Kreusch (51) joined Bennett for an 82-run stand for the third wicket. Their partnership got their team up to a total of 220, after which Kreusch was bowled by Kyle Nipper.
From there onwards, none of the batsmen were able to serve as effective partners for Bennett – however, aided by minor contributions from wicketkeeper skipper Abongile Sodumo (2), Romano Ramoo (5), and Darryl Brown (5*), Bennett managed to get Border up to 266 by the end of 50 overs, at the expense of 5 wickets.
Border’s Jerry Nqolo (9-0-56-3) and Darryl Brown (5-0-28-2) then proceeded to put in solid efforts to ensure their opponents stayed well away from their total. While KZN-Inland’s openers Nick Hendrie (59) and wicketkeeper batsman Lepono Ndhlovu (72) made valiant attempts to get their team started on the right track, none of the remaining batsmen managed to follow up with equally substantial performances.
The opening partnership yielded 109 runs, and after the dismissal of Hendrie at the hands of Justin Kreusch, Ndhlovu teamed up with Sarel Erwee (32) for a 56-run partnership for the second wicket. Both batsmen were dismissed within a few overs of each other, Ndhlovu by Shaun de Kock, and Erwee off Brown.
Brad Moses (41) attempted to revive the innings after the sudden fall of wickets, and his 45-run partnership with skipper Matt Hulett (18) got their team total up to 225. However, Brown snapped the captain up as his second wicket of the day, after which Nqolo proceeded to take Kyle Nipper (0), Moses, and Tyler Lortan (0) out of the game. KZN-Inland eventually finished at 251 by the end of 50 overs, with Border going on to secure a 15-run victory.