Cape Town - It is not only Roger Federer and the Williams sisters that turned back the age clock in Melbourne this past weekend.
The Cape Cobras’ renaissance too gathered further momentum at SuperSport Park through virtuoso performances from two of their stalwarts. Former captain Justin Ontong (37) and Rory Kleinveldt (33) starred with bat and ball respectively to propel the Cobras to a shock nine-wicket Sunfoil Series win over the defending champions, the Titans, in their own backyard.
It helped lift the Cobras off the basement of the Sunfoil Series log for the first time this season. And despite the Cobras being in fifth position, the victory simultaneously kept alive the Western Cape side’s chances of snatching the Sunfoil Series title with two rounds remaining.
Considering their lowly standing at the end of last year when the Cobras were caught up in all-sorts off field dramas and yet to win a single four-day match for the season, the start to 2017 has been nothing short of astounding.
Under the new leadership duo of coach Ashwell Prince and captain Dane Piedt, the Cobras have recorded two victories and a rain-affected draw which has placed them just 16.52 points off the table-topping Knights. And with the Cobras hosting the series leaders in Paarl this coming weekend, the opportunity for the home side to make up even further ground ahead of the final round has certainly energised the old guard.
“If we drew this match, our Sunfoil Series campaign was over, but because of this win, we are still in the run. Our next game is against the log leaders, the Knights, and we are eager to make a statement in that four-day match too,” said Ontong, who spent 342 minutes at the crease, faced 206 balls and struck 13 fours in his 110.
The core elements of the Cobras’ recent success might be based on the performances of the senior players, but the way the rookies have responded to being guided on the field has also been a revelation.
Young all-rounder Jason Smith showed great maturity in scoring 69 off 152 balls on a “tricky wicket” where “the ball was nipping off the seam and also swinging in overcast conditions” to stay with Ontong as the pair added 148 runs for the fourth wicket. It allowed the Cobras to push on to 326, enabling the visitors to ultimately a take a match-winning 131 first innings lead.
“Jason and I played and missed, but I spoke to him and encouraged him. I told him that it is a pivotal partnership and he maybe had to curb his natural instinctive aggression, but it was a very important knock by Smith,” Ontong told the Cobras website.
“It was extremely important to leave very, very well, even if that meant that a few deliveries just missed the off stump. I decided that I would force the attack to bowl at me, instead of playing outside the off stump and get nicked off. I tried to play with the full face of the blade and hit it between mid-off and mid-on or through mid-wicket,” Ontong said.
Kleinveldt had a similar impact on the young bowlers in the Cobras line-up. The burly seamer claimed 5/45 in the second innings but received solid support from Tshepo Moreki and Lizaad Williams.
“Rors kept the ball in the right areas and knew that there would be nip off the seam. His experience was a key factor. It was important for us that the senior players stood up and that was what Rory and I did,” Ontong added.
“The support bowling by the younger bowlers like Tshepo Moreki, Jason and Lizaad Williams was absolutely outstanding. They just followed Rory’s example,” he said.