Rain delayed the start of the Western Province-Boland innings for close on three hours against the home side KwaZulu-Natal Dolphins in their Standard Bank Cup cricket match at the Sahara Stadium, Kingsmead, in Durban on Wednesday.
It eventually went down to the Duckworth-Lewis method of decision, which set the Cape men a target of 188 off 33 overs when play was resumed at 9.25pm.
In the end, they managed 169 for eight, which left the Dolphins the winners by 18 runs.
It was always going to be a tough task against tight bowling for Province, and after 10 overs they were well shy of the asking rate — even though Andrew Puttick and Henry Davids had shown a willingness to get on with the job in hand.
But once they and Ashwell Prince (five) and Neil Johnson (17) were dismissed — Johnson had just scored his 7 000th run in limited-overs cricket — it was the Dolphins who were clearly in command.
JP Duminy (24) and Con de Lange (45) rallied the ship, but the SOS signals were flying high.
One of the oddities of the game was the fact that Dale Benkenstein, after spilling a sitter in the slips, went on to take four catches for the Dolphins.
The five points earned were enough to propel the Dolphins into next year’s semifinals of the Standard Bank Cup competition.
The showers began just as the supper break loomed, with the Dolphins having scored 223 for six off their 45 overs after Lance Klusener had won the toss and decided to bat.
The Dolphins earned their first-innings total thanks to a 146-run third-wicket partnership between Wade Wingfield (85) and Dale Benkenstein (59), after which they contrived to lose three wickets for four runs off 10 balls in the dying stage of the innings.
Much to the disappointment of a crowd of just more than 3 000 spectators, the rain meant another late night for fans The last game at the Sahara Stadium that was weather-affected saw play continue until 12.30am.
The Dolphins’ match against the Warriors earlier in the season was also abandoned because of the weather.
The match seemed firmly in the grasp of the Dolphins after the Benkenstein -Wingfield stand, but as in all previous Standard Bank games this season, the Dolphins were their own worst enemies and they threw away their advantage with poor finishing — either bowling or batting.
Wingfield batted superbly with 10 boundaries in his innings and ended when he tried to accelerate the pace towards the end of the allocated 45 overs.
Benkenstein hit four fours and a six in another polished innings after Doug Watson (23), out to a sheer brilliant caught and bowled dismissal at the hands of Quinton Friend, and Imraan Khan (10), who was bowled by Charl Willoughby, had departed in rapid succession.
Pick of the Western Province-Boland bowlers were Friend with two for 47 and Mark de Stadler with two for 55, while Willoughby worked hard for a one for 31 return off his nine overs. — Sapa