A late start after lunch and an early closure because of fading light left the Dolphins with the upper hand on the first day of their SuperSport Series cricket match against the Highveld Lions at the Sahara Stadium, at Kingsmead in Durban, on Thursday.
Heavy rain made play impossible before lunch. Soon after tea, with 26 overs left to be bowled, the Lions — who were asked to bat after Dolphins stand-in skipper Imraan Khan had won the toss — had been reduced to 77 for three after 29 overs.
And all three scalps had fallen to Shaun Pollock who in another masterful display ended the day with figures of 11 overs, six maidens and just 17 runs off his attack for his three wickets.
Only Lions captain Neil McKenzie has stood his ground thus far, batting for 116 minutes and hitting eight fours in his elegant 44 not out.
Pollock removed Alviero Pietersen and Werner Coetzee in successive deliveries with the first two balls of his second over and later got rid of Blake Snijman, thanks to a brilliant second catch at slip by English Test player Liam Plunkett, for 28. Pietersen and Coetzee failed to score.
McKenzie and Plunkett had added 70 runs in a defiant third-wicket stand of 111 minutes off 158 balls.
The match will resume at 9am on Friday, weather permitting. — Sapa