Johannesburg – The Lions eased to a 38-run win over the Titans in their One-Day Cup match at the Wanderers on Friday.
Set a moderate 261 to win, the Titans chase stuttered from the start, and the visitors were eventually all out for 222.
Even the efforts of top-scorer David Wiese (77) for the Titans could not prevent the defeat.
Lonwabo Tsotsobe again got his side off to a good start, claiming the scalps of Titans openers Henry Davids for one and Heino Kuhn (9) inside the first five overs as the visitors fell to 17 for two.
The left-arm seamer, Tsotsobe, ended with figures of 3/29.
Eddie Leie provided the threat for the Lions in the spin department as he picked up three wickets for 54 runs in 10 overs.
Leie bowled both Farhaan Behardien (20) and Mangaliso Mosehle (12) and had Proteas batsman Dean Elgar (10) caught behind.
Earlier, the Lions made 260 for eight in their 50 overs mainly through the efforts of openers Stephen Cook (55) and Alviro Petersen (76). The pair put on 106 for the first wicket at a steady five runs per over.
Cook found his timing early and brought up his half-century in 68 balls, while Petersen got to his 50 in 64 balls.
Fiery paceman Marchant de Lange was the key destroyer for the Titans bowling attack with figures of 4/57, and he made the first breakthrough.
De Lange induced an inside edge from Cook which disturbed the stumps of the Lions captain in the 21st over.
Temba Bavuma made 13 before he misjudged an Elgar delivery which kept low and knocked back middle stump.
A 38-run partnership between Petersen and Neil McKenzie restored the momentum for the Lions temporarily, but again the Titans struck.
Petersen was eventually out going for a big shot, caught at deep mid wicket by Kuhn from the bowling of Roelof van der Merwe with the Lions falling to 172 for three.
McKenzie timed the ball well in his 47-ball knock, but when he struck the ball on the bounce back to bowler Rowan Richards, the former Proteas player was run out.
The veteran moved out his crease without realising Richards had fielded the ball, and the left-arm bowler promptly hit the stumps as McKenzie was short of his ground.
With the Lions on 211 for four with just over six overs remaining, they struggled to up the scoring rate without partnerships, and had to settle for what appeared to be an average total on the high-scoring ground. – Sapa