COMING from what would have been an upsetting defeat at home to Western Province last week, the Titans head into this week’s penultimate round of Four-Day Series fixtures with a point to prove.
Before their loss, the Centurion-based outfit were sitting second on the four-day competition standings, and have since slipped down to third place behind the Dolphins and the Lions, who currently sit at second and first place, respectively.
This week, the Sky Blues take on a wounded North West Dragons side following their loss to the Dolphins at Kingsmead Stadium in Durban last week.
With both teams having endured losses last week, the fixture promises to be action-packed at SuperSport Park from Thursday (10am start).
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The Titans have youngsters Lhuan-dre Pretorius and Dewald Brevis in good touch as the two batters scored a century and 99 respectively against Province last week.
On the other hand, the Dragons have all-rounder Ruan de Swardt, captain Wihan Lubbe and Raynard van Tonder in good nick following their fighting half-centuries in Durban last week.
The fast bowlers on both sides will enjoy the variable bounce at SuperSport Park, as it had a considerable impact in last week’s fixture.
The Titans will hope that Andile Phehlukwayo can hit his straps, as he has shown glimpses of his best form since moving to Centurion.
However, the batters will take comfort in knowing that there is a reward on that wicket if they apply themselves as Pretorius and Brevis, and Western Province’s Tony de Zorzi and David Bedingham, did last week.
Across the Jukskei River, the Lions will host the Dolphins at the Wanderers (10am) for a fixture that will potentially decide which team will secure a home final between the two sides.
While the Lions had to settle for a draw at Boland Park last week, in a game that was affected by inclement weather, the Dolphins are on a roll in domestic cricket.
The Dolphins’ victory over the Dragons last week meant that they extended their winning streak in domestic cricket to seven consecutive matches, following their six consecutive wins in their One-Day Cup campaign.
With form and momentum on their side, the Dolphins become a genuine threat for the table-topping Lions.
However, the Lions will take comfort in that they have home-ground advantage.
Fresh from a seventh career century, Dolphins batter Jason Smith will be itching to get out on the park to take on what is a seriously good Lions bowling attack led by Lutho Sipamla.
In Cape Town, Province will host Boland for a provincial derby at the iconic Newlands.
Province, coming from a massive victory in the highveld last week and boosted by the availability of their Proteas players, including skipper Kyle Verreynne and seamer Dane Paterson, will be confident of grabbing the Western Cape bragging rights.