The Cape Cobras will fall back on the experience of an old hand in Justin Kemp as they look to overcome the loss of overseas star, Kieron Pollard, in Sunday’s crunch RAM SLAM T20 clash against the bizhub Highveld Lions at Bidvest Wanderers.
Pollard was ruled out of the remainder of the tournament after injuring his right knee during last Sunday’s win over the Knights in Paarl, handing the Cobras their latest blow in a campaign beset by injuries and non-availabilities.
Wayne Parnell, Rory Kleinveldt, Robin Peterson and George Linde have all spent time on the sidelines during the tournament, while Pollard was absent for a week when he was called up to the West Indian Twenty20 side in Sri Lanka.
“We’ve been in the wars in this tournament,” said Cobras coach, Paul Adams.
However, Adams had three causes for cheer this week, two of them on the injury front as Parnell showed promising recovery from his foot injury and Peterson also improved swiftly enough to suggest that he will be available on Sunday.
The third fillip is the depth of the Cobras’ resources, which allows Adams to call on someone like Kemp – who will play his 100th T20 match – to fill the gap left by Pollard.
“Kempy has been around very much as a mentor, practising with the guys and staying in touch with the game, so for us it’s about bringing in that experience,” said Adams.
“Also Robbie has recovered nicely so it’s a very experienced side that we take into the weekend, which is at the business end, so hopefully some of their calmness will rub on to the younger players.”
The Cobras currently sit in third place, but could lose that position if they lose to the Lions, who are just four points behind.
The Lions had the opportunity to draw level on points on Wednesday night, but blew their chance by losing to the Knights, making Sunday’s game all the more important.
“Everyone knows where we stand,” said Lions captain, Thami Tsolekile. “If we had won on Wednesday night then it would have taken the pressure off, but now every game has become a must-win.”
Tsolekile acknowledged that batting remains the main problem for the Lions, but suggested that they wouldn’t want conditions to try and make up for that in Sunday’s game.
“Ideally we don’t want the wicket to be too quick, because our spin bowling has been one of our main strengths,” he pointed out. “That said, the Wanderers has always got pace, even when it’s turning.”
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