The Central Gauteng Lions are eager to add the T20 Challenge trophy to the 4-Day Series silverware they’ve already secured this season.
The Lions host the Northerns Titans in the first T20 Challenge semi-final on Wednesday, (6pm, SuperSport Action).
“It’s not a challenge to keep these guys hungry, they have the opportunity to win two out of the three competitions this season,” said Lions head coach Russell Domingo.
“There are also T20 World Cup spots up for grabs and the players know how important this last week of the competition is. If there’s any uncertainty about Proteas selection, then this tournament can really clarify things.
“It is an important competition and there are some fantastic players involved in it.
“Everybody is still looking for that perfect game, that’s what we are striving for, even though you can never reach it – there’ll always be a wide or two. But we are just trying to get better, to stay grounded and not get too far ahead of ourselves.”
The former Proteas and Bangladesh head coach has mixed and matched his starting XIs in recent weeks, ensuring that the players are not only kept fresh, but that he has numerous options when it comes to deciding on a strategy to beat the Titans.
Will Lutho Sipamla and Codi Yusuf bowl in the powerplay or will Delano Potgieter bring his swing bowling into the mix? Or will Wiaan Mulder take the new ball with left-arm spinner Bjorn Fortuin and Evan Jones also feature in the powerplay?
In the batting, will Ryan Rickelton and Reeza Hendricks open, or will one of Rassie van der Dussen or Temba Bavuma go up the order? Will Zubayr Hamza or Connor Esterhuizen feature? Where does Mitchell van Buuren fit into the scheme of things?
“Obviously we have a lot of options,” said Domingo. “There are so many different bowlers we can use in the powerplay and it’s a good thing not to be predictable because then teams cannot always plan against you. We’ve also mixed the batting order around and the guys have all really bought into it. Full credit to them, they’ve got on with it.
“Maybe in the last couple of games we’ve lacked a really big score, so hopefully someone in the top four will be our in-batter at the death this time.
“But we are in a very blessed position and we’ve had a good competition, winning 10 out of 14 matches to top the log, and two of those lost games were off the last ball. So, we have competed well.
“In terms of selection, I’ve tried to take performance out of it and given as many of our players multiple opportunities. That has served us well, but it’s time to settle down now.”
Photo: Sydney Seshibedi/Gallo Images
