Cape Cobras captain Dane Piedt is looking to build on their first midweek win of the One-Day Cup season when they welcome the table-topping Dolphins to Boland Park in Paarl on Friday.
It has been a frustrating time for the hosts, who have endured a forgettable few weeks in which they surrendered the 4-Day Franchise Series title to the Highveld Lions, having been within touching distance of the top first-class prize.
They then suffered a narrow loss to the Warriors in their opening match of the 50-over campaign.
In mid-December, coach Ashwell Prince saw his Cape Town Blitz side meekly run over in the Mzansi Super League final, all of which have been moments that have caused plenty of pain to those associated with the franchise. However, there was some solace on Tuesday after Kyle Verreynne’s mature century secured them a much-needed win away at the Knights.
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Now skipper Piedt is hoping to build on that performance, heading into Friday.
‘During the four-day competition we found ways to get out of trouble like that and it was the case again, so long may it continue,’ he said. ‘It was an unbelievable knock from Kyle this time that got us over the line.
‘It was a game that ebbed and flowed, fortunately enough we came out on the right side compared to the first game. I’m really happy with the troops and proud of the character they showed.
‘It’s important now that we kick on from that heading into the next game on Friday.’
The Dolphins, meanwhile, have been excellent so far. They beat the form team in South African cricket, the Lions, in their opener, followed by a tense win over the Multiply Titans in their last game on Sunday.
Both were narrow wins and showed that they had the capacity to beat anyone on their day.
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But coach Grant Morgan is wary of the threat that will be posed by the dangerous Cobras.
‘They’ve got good players across their side,’ said Morgan. ‘Good opening partnerships, both bowling and batting. They have a good young middle order who can handle pressure, but most importantly, they seem to be a happy team. They are a proud team and they stick together so we are going to have to be at our best.’
Zubayr Hamza has been released from the Standard Bank Proteas Test squad to play for the Cobras.
Cape Cobras squad
Dane Piedt (captain)
Pieter Malan (vice-captain)
David Bedingham
Tladi Bokako
Zubayr Hamza
Rory Kleinveldt
George Linde
Janneman Malan
Akhona Mnyaka
Aviwe Mgijima
Dane Paterson
Jason Smith
Kyle Verreynne
Photo: Johan Pretorius/Gallo Images
