The Cape Cobras lost their final round-robin match of the One Day Cup to the Warriors in Port Elizabeth by nine wickets on Saturday.
The result saw coach Ashwell Prince’s charges, who booked their place in the semifinals with a victory over the Knights at Newlands last week, finish the regular season in fourth place.
Their final log position will see them travel to SuperSport Park for a semifinal against the table-topping Titans.
Prince’s side, however, will know that they will have to be at their very best in Wednesday’s semifinal if they want to play any part in the decider.
For that to happen, their bowling attack will have to up their game.
After bowling out the Knights for just 186 runs - with leading wicket-taker Rory Kleinveldt taking 5/22 - they simply couldn’t break through the defence of Matthew Breetzke, who scored an unbeaten 131 on Saturday and captain Jon-Jon Smuts (92*) as the pair shared a second wicket partnership of 207 to help the Knights leapfrog the Cobras into third on the standings.
SOLID START: Janneman Malan. Photo: BACKPAGEPIX
The Titans, meanwhile, have beaten the Cobras in both their round-robin matches.
In the first encounter at Newlands, the Titans put on a massive 320/6, before bowling out their hosts for just 237.
Then in the reverse fixture at Centurion, it was the Capetonians’ batting lineup that completely capitulated as they were bowled out for just 150 runs, with the Titans getting the winning score with all their wickets still in the bank.
Prince’s side know they will have to pull up their socks.
And for them to get over that hurdle, they will not only need a good performance by their bowlers but their batsmen as well.
And here the tournament’s leading runs-scorer Janneman Malan has a big role to play.
DESTROYER: Rory Kleinveldt. Photo: BACKPAGEPIX
Having scored a total of 435 runs in the 10 matches at an average of 48.33, it will be important for Malan to get the Cobras off to the perfect start if they want to cause what would be an upset.
The Dolphins, meanwhile, will host the Warriors in Thursday’s other semifinal.