The Warriors face a psychological challenge as much as a physical one against the Dolphins at Axxess St George’s on Friday when they will attempt to bounce back from a nightmare defeat to The Titans in the RAM SLAM T20.
More than the result, it was the manner of Wednesday’s loss that had the potential to scar, as Wayne Parnell’s no-ball gifted the Titans the game off the very last ball of a high-scoring match.
It also condemned the Warriors to a second straight defeat ahead of an encounter with the high-flying Dolphins, who have won both of their games so far, and created the potential for things to go further downhill.
“We realise that we only have ourselves to blame because we made some costly mistakes in the field,” said Warriors coach Piet Botha. “In the context of the tournament, fortunately the wins in our first two games mean that we’re still very much in it, so it’s just a matter of being at our best in the six games that are left so that we can win the majority of them.
“The Titans proved in the Momentum One-Day Cup that with three games left you can still come from nowhere and qualify, so it’s always open.”
The good news for the Warriors as they returned to Port Elizabeth on Thursday was that Colin Ingram is on the verge of returning from a lengthy injury lay-off.
“It sounds like Colin could be back,” said Botha. “We’re doing a fitness test on Friday morning but it looks quite positive.”
The Dolphins have beaten The Titans and Knights in their two games so far, and just about the only negative one could attach to them is the fact that the week-long break has not allowed them to maintain that momentum.
HEAD TO HEAD – Warriors vs. Dolphins
Matches Played 11
Warriors Win 07
Dolphins Win 04
Tie 00
No Result 00
CURRENT POINTS TABLE
| Teams | Mat | Won | Lost | Tied | N/R | Pts | Net RR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cape Cobras | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 12 | +0.529 |
| Dolphins | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | +0.474 |
| Warriors | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 8 | +0.157 |
| Titans | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 8 | -0.003 |
| Knights | 4 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 4 | -0.172 |
| Lions | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -0.898 |
James Buttler
As the editor of World Cricket Badger he is intent on building the website to give quality coverage of the domestic game around the world.
He is also the presenter of the Cricket Badger Radio Show on Radio Yorkshire every Tuesday evening between 7-9pm UK time.
James was the full-time Media Manager at Yorkshire County Cricket Club between 2007 and 2010.
James is a published author, a writer/video contributor to many cricket publications and a complete cricket badger!
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