ANDY CAPOSTAGNO, Johannesburg | Saturday 6.00pm.
THE Supersport Series final at the Wanderers is intriguingly poised at the end of the second day. Gauteng are 221-3 in reply to Border’s total of 346, trailing by 125 runs with seven wickets in hand. The key wicket of Daryll Cullinan is still intact, but the second new ball becomes due after eight overs of the third morning of this five day match. Cullinan finished the day 55 not out with Geoffrey Toyana on 27.
Ken Rutherford fell short of his fourth century of the season, but his 79 from 139 balls with 10 boundaries took him past Eastern Province’s James Bryant as the highest run scorer of the season in the Supersport Series. He got good support from Sven Koenig (33) in a second wicket stand of 72, and then from Cullinan in a third wicket stand of 65.
On the second day the pitch offered scant seam movement and Border captain Pieter Strydom was forced to use his bowlers in short spells. Batting got progressively more difficult, however, as the ball began to keep low on a regular basis. One such delivery accounted for Adam Bacher, lbw to Vasbert Drakes for 17, but Koenig contributed to his own dismissal, glancing a leg-side ball from Tyron Henderson into the gloves of Mark Boucher.
Beginning the day at 260-8 Border extended their first innings to the unlikely heights of 346, having at one stage been 113-6. Strydom was dismissed, bowled by Kenny Benjamin, inside the first hour for 88, having hit nine fours and two sixes from 197 balls. His stand with Tyron Henderson was worth 78, but the bowlers’ frustrations did not end there as the last pair added a further 63.
Makhaya Ntini was not out on a career best 34 when Henderson skied a pull to mid-wicket off the bowling of Andrew Hall. Henderson’s career best included nine fours and three sixes and came off just 87 balls. Hall finished with five for 67 and Benjamin four for 102.
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