OWN CORRESPONDENT, Johannesburg | Sunday 1.00pm.
GRIQUALAND West and former South African cricket skipper Kepler Wessels led his side to a stunning 30-run Standard Bank league victory over home favourites Gauteng at the Wanderers on Friday night.
Wessels topped the boards with a polished 76 and his effort helped the diamond farmers to score 200/6 wickets off their 45 overs.
Gauteng bore the brunt of the Griquas bowling onslaught and were at one stage reduced to 46/6 after 13,2 overs and 92/9 after 31,4. The home side had to settle for the slightly ordinary total of 170/9.
It was Gauteng’s first defeat from three outings, and Griquas’ second win in three.
At Willowmore Park in Benoni, meanwhile, Dirkie de Vos of the Northerns Titans recorded only the seventh hat-trick in domestic day-night cricket to set his side on course for a 47 run victory over home side Easterns.
The Titans scored 200 in their 45 overs, while Easterns could only manage 153, thanks largely to the efforts of the De Vos, who returned a career best 6/26.
Gerald Dros of Northerns scored the highest total in the competition to date with an unbeaten 97 runs.
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