The unbeaten Dolphins wait in the final for the winner between Lions and Warriors, as we wrap up day 8 of the CSA T20 Challenge.

In the final league phase game, the Dolphins have officially booked a ticket to the final, and the loss for the Titans drew the drapes on their campaign in the Betway T20 Challenge.

The home team chose to bat first yet again, with runs on the board proving key. Grant Roelofsen and Sarel Erwee got off to a lively start, until Dayyaan Galiem struck in his first over to dismiss Roelofsen.

That set the tone for what was to come later in the innings. On every occasion when it looked like the Dolphins were on track, the Titans pulled things back with a wicket. Ultimately, another priceless knock from David Miller (49* from 35, 3 fours and 2 sixes) helped drive the Dolphins to a defendable total, twice in two games. Lungi Ngidi was, by far, the star of the show – his three wickets all came at important intervals and further underlined his death-bowling prowess. Okuhle Cele impressed as well, conceding only 10 runs in 3 overs.

It was a more cautious start for the Titans, as Dean Elgar looked to dig in after the early wicket of Aiden Markram. Interestingly, the spinners did well to contain the scoring rate and build the pressure, but the pacers capitalized and took regular wickets. Galiem was promoted up the order, and top-scored for the Titans with a solid 45. However, Rob Frylinck and Kerwin Mungroo’s regular strikes kept the visitors on the back foot. Prenelan Subrayen was the dark horse for the Dolphins, going 0/15 in his 4 overs.

After Galiem’s wicket, it was time to accelerate, but Chris Morris’ dismissal meant it was all but done. Heinrich Klaasen scored a 14-ball 29*, in a last ditch effort to turn the game around, but the damage had been done previously.

The Titans and Warriors are both 2-3 in their 5 games, but the Warriors progress to the playoff game due to their superior net run rate.

The Dolphins are set to play the winner of the playoff (Lions v Warriors) on Sunday. Stick around for some exciting action!

Dolphins 151/6 in 20 overs (Miller 49*, Erwee 33 – Ngidi 3/20)

Titans 144/6 in 20 overs (Galiem 45, Klaasen 29* – Frylinck 2/26, Mungroo 2/29)

The Lions have eased their way to their fourth win after clinching a rather pressure-free chase of 145 against the Cobras.

Having chosen to bat first, the Cobras suffered a couple of early blows. It’s a trend we’ve noticed across all teams this tournament, as top-order batsmen continued to struggle against opposition spinners. Bjorn Fortuin claimed the wicket of Tony de Zorzi on the very first ball, and Kyle Verreynne’s sprightly start came to a premature end when Lutho Sipamla dismissed him for 21.

To compound their worries, Zubayr Hamza retired hurt, probably due to a groin strain. It was down to the experienced duo of Christiaan Jonker and George Linde to rebuild from 32/3. They added 37 runs together, but that stand was second to Jonker and Corbin Bosch, who added 59.

Bjorn Fortuin and Lutho Sipamla took 2 wickets each, and Aaron Phangiso bowled a miserly 4 overs for just 19 runs.

Reeza Hendricks looked more assured against spin, and even though the Lions lost Rickelton early, it was smooth sailing for Hendricks and skipper Temba Bavuma. While the Cobras bowled tightly in patches, Hendricks kept the ball rolling, punctuating his solid knock of 75 with regular hits to the fence.

The chase seemed to be quite relaxed, and the Lions took it deep with 8 to get in the last over. Proteas allrounder Wiaan Mulder applied the finishing touches with emphasis, smacking a six and a boundary to seal a playoff spot for his side.

Cobras 144/6 in 20 overs (Jonker 44, Bosch 32* – Sipamla 2/27, Fortuin 2/29)

Lions 147/3 in 19.3 overs (R Hendricks 75 – Z Abrahams 2/29)