Knights vs Titans, Momentum One Day Cup 2020, Today Match Prediction 01 Mar 2020

kng vs tit Match Prediction & Analysis

The 17th match of the ongoing Momentum One-Day Cup will see Knights taking on Titans at the Diamond Oval in Kimberley. While Titans are still contention for a semi-final spot, Knights are languishing at the bottom of the table.

In their last match, Titans’ bowlers had a really poor day as they went onto concede 308-6 after being asked to bowl first. Only Junior Dala and Aiden Markram managed to take three wickets each but even the former was pretty expensive. In return, quite a few top-order batsmen like Markram, Dean Elgar and Grant Thomson started off pretty well but they threw wickets at crucial points.

The duo of Tony de Zorzi and Rivaldo Moonsamy gave some hope with impressive fifties but Titans still fell short by 35 runs in the end. On the other hand, Nicky van der Bergh’s patient 91-run knock along with Delano Potgieter’s quickfire 69 proved to be the main reason for a massive 87-run loss against Lions. In a chase of 276, openers Andries Gous and Jacques Snyman came up with the fifties but the rest of the Knights batting line-up fell like a pack of cards.

TEAMS PREVIEW

Knights Preview

It has been a real struggle for Knights and this is proved by the statistics too. Only Jacques Snyman has mustered up more than 200 runs. Highly-skilled players like Keegan Petersen and Ryan van Tonder have been really disappointing so far. With the ball, things have been far better as Mbulelo Budazo and Shaun von Berg have excelled by picking up nine and seven wickets respectively.

They have also found good support from Ottniel Baartman who has contributed four wickets at a very miserly economy rate.

Knights Predicted Playing XI:

Andries Gous, Jacques Snyman, Keegan Petersen, Ryan von Tonder, Wandile Makwetu (C/WK), Obus Pienaar, Patrick Kruger, Shaun von Berg, Tshepo Ntuli, Mbulelo Budaza, Ottniel Baartman

Knights Actual Playing XI:

Mbulelo Budaza, Ottneil Baartman, Grant Mokoena, Keegan Petersen, Marco Jansen, Shaun von Berg, Wandile Makwetu, AGS Gous, PJ van Biljon, Jacques Snyman, Patrick Kruger

Titans Preview

In the absence of star players like Faf du Plessis and Heinrich Klaasen, the experienced Dean Elgar and Tony de Zorzi have been the two standout batsmen for Titans. After five matches, Elgar and de Zorzi have scored 236 and 247 runs respectively.

Players like Aiden Markram and Farhaan Behardien even more strength to the Titans batting line-up. With the ball, Dayyaan Galiem and Tshepo Moreki have done superbly to pick up six wickets each until now. Titans also received a massive boost as Junior Dala returned for the last game and even went onto pick up three wickets. Last season, Junior Dala’s performances were unbelievable as he ended the season with 27 scalps from 11 matches.

Titans Predicted Playing XI:

Diego Rosier, Aiden Markram, Grant Thomson (C), Dean Elgar, Tony de Zorzi, Farhaan Behardien, Rivaldo Moonsamy (WK), Corbin Bosch, Junior Dala, Imran Manack, Alfred Mothoa

Titans Actual Playing XI:

DS Rosier, Alfred Mothoa, Dean Elgar, Imran Manack, Junior Dala, Rivaldo Moonsamy, Farhaan Behardien, GM Thomson, Aiden Markram, Corbin Bosch, Tony de Zorzi

PITCH AND WEATHER CONDITIONS

Weather Conditions

The average first innings score of 223 in ODI games at this venue shows the nature of the surfaces that are dished out at the Diamond Oval. There will definitely be something on offer for the pacers during the first hour or so. However, Jacques Snyman’s scintillating century reflected that batting should get pretty straightforward in the 2nd inning. The weather looks pretty fine for this game but there is small 25% chance of rain on match-day. Overall, AccuWeather have predicted a maximum temperature of 25-degree celsius.

Venue Details

The De Beers Diamond Oval in Kimberley which is the home of the Knights is a pretty well-known ground in Kimberley. The ground last hosted an ODI match against Zimbabwe in 2018. The venue also hosted a number of matches during the recently-concluded ICC U-19 World Cup including the tournament opener between South Africa and Afghanistan.

Toss: To Bowl

The De Beers Diamond Oval is known as a venue that assists teams batting second to a massive extent. Even in the lone Momentum One-Day Cup match to have been played this season, Knights chased down their 258-run target against Lions in just 35.2 overs.