The second of the CSA T20 Challenge semi finals sees the Warriors host the WSB Cape Cobras at Buffalo Park, East London on Wednesday and the betting suggests we could be in for a close game.
The composition of the semi finals was finalised on Sunday with the winners of this clash set to take on the victors of the other semi between the Lions and the Dolphins which takes place earlier in the day.
Heading into the semi finals this is how the outright tournament winner betting looked, remember to get any outright bets down before the start of the first semi final.
Lions 19/10
WSB Cape Cobras 28/10
Warriors 28/10
Dolphins 4/1
Note prices quoted are correct at the time of publication but are subject to change.
Warriors:
The Warriors finished second on the log at the end of the round robin stage, 2 points behind the Lions and 2 in front of the Cobras. A 4 wicket win over the Knights on Sunday saw the Warriors move above their opponents here in the standings and hence they have home advantage in this semi final.
The Warriors won 4 of their 10 matches alongside 2 defeats and no result was possible in the other 4.
Sunday’s match between the Warriors and the Knights at this venue was a low scoring affair with the Warriors restricting the Knights to 96/7 with Birch returning figures of 4/10 but the chase wasn’t as straight forward as it seemed.
This was how the Warriors lined up against the Knights on Sunday
J-J T Smuts (capt), ARC Birch, M P Breetzke, G L Cloete, J de Klerk, T P Kaber, S S B Magala, M Marais, O Nyaku, S Qeshile, L Sipamla
The Warriors were beaten semi finalists in this seasons 1 Day Cup and also lost in the semi finals of the T20 tournament last season.
WSB Cape Cobras:
The WSB Cape Cobras were top of the log for much of the season but they lost their last 2 matches of the round robin to finish with an overall record of 5 wins, 4 defeats and 1 no result. The Cobras avoided much of the rain that plagued other sides in this tournament and after winning 4 of their first 5 matches they looked to be the team to beat.
Away from home the Cobras started with a victory at the Lions but 3 other road trips ended in defeat and 1 was washed out.
This was how the Cobras lined up against the Dolphins on Sunday.
Aviwe Mgijima, David Bedingham, George Linde, Janneman Malan, Jason Smith, Jean-Paul Duminy, Kyle Verreynne (wk), Nkululeko Serame, Rory Kleinveldt (capt), Tladi Bokako, Vernon Philander
Earlier this season the Cobras were also beaten semi finalists in the One Day Cup. In last season’s T20 Challenge the Cobras finished third in the standings with a record of 5 wins, 4 defeats and 1 no result, exactly the same as their performance in the current campaign. Unfortunately their semi final away to the Dolphins was washed out and as the Dolphins had a better record in the round robin the Cobras were eliminated.
Head to Head
When the teams met in Paarl early in the tournament the Cobras won by 7 wickets with the highlight being an unbeaten 103 from Janneman Malan.
The return was staged in Port Elizabeth and Marco Marais smashed 75 off just 36 balls as the Warriors posted 189 all out and the Cobras came up 10 runs short in the chase.
The Betting, click here for all markets
Warriors 10/11
WSB Cape Cobras 10/11
Claim your 1st deposit bonus of up to R10,000 here
Note prices quoted are correct at the time of publication but are subject to change.
Verdict:
The teams look very evenly matched and they shared the spoils in the head to heads with home advantage being a factor on both occasions. There are potential match winners on both sides but we side with the Cobras to rediscover their A game and make it through to the final.
Suggested Bet: WSB Cape Cobras to win at 10/11
