The Highveld Lions’s potent bowling attack cut Mercedes Benz Warriors to shreds at Sedgars Park in Potchefstroom on Friday, leaving the visiting team on 134 for seven, still 92 runs short of avoiding the follow-on.
The Lions, led by a revitalised David Terbrugge, were outstanding in the field, as they devastated a talented Warriors batting line-up with steady and straight bowling.
Terbrugge took the wickets of opener Carl Bradfield and middle-order batsman Arno Jacobs and Andrew Hall dismissed Mark Bruyns to leave the Warriors three down by tea.
Bradfield was somewhat unlucky when he played on to a delivery that failed to bounce as much as he anticipated. Bruyns was the second wicket to fall when he was trapped in front leg before wicket for nine.
Jacobs fell to a neat catch at second slip by Lions captain HD Ackerman.
It didn’t get any better after the interval, as Charl Langeveldt and Garnett Kruger added to the damage by dismissing Dumisa Makalima for 20 and Mark Boucher for 32 respectively, both being given out leg before wicket.
There was some resistance from Warriors skipper Pieter Strydom, who was unbeaten on 35 when bad light brought a premature end to proceedings with 4,2 overs left to bowl.
But he received little assistance from the lower middle order. Robin Peterson was clean-bowled by Hall for 15 and Tyron Henderson fell to a sharp catch by Justin Ontong at silly mid-on.
Strydom will have to rely on the tail, if his side is took make any inroads into the Lions’ healthy first-innings total of 375.
That total came about as a result of a battling unbeaten 70 by young Werner Coetsee who struck seven fours in a 243 minute stay at the crease.
South Africa’s top fast bowler, Makhaya Ntini, finished with four wickets, including two in two balls to finish the innings, to leave himself on a hat-trick when the Lions bat again. — Sapa