Warriors vs Knights, CSAFS, Today Match Prediction

WAR vs KNG Match Prediction & Analysis

After the completion of the CSA Provincial One-Day Challenge Division One 2025, South African domestic cricket is returning back to first-class cricket. CSA Four-Day Series Division One 2024-25 will restart with the game between Warriors and Knights at St George's Park, Gqeberha between 20-24 March from 12:30 PM onwards. The Knights are unbeaten in the last five games against the Knights.

Warriors played their last first-class game against Titans in December. Batting first they were bowled out to 157 with five of their players getting out on zero. Swanepoel then took five wickets to restrict the Titans to 342. Sinethemba Qeshile scored the much-needed 85 runs in the second innings to help his team set a target of 60 runs. The Warriors suffered a massive defeat by 10 wickets.

The Knights played their last game against Western Province. Tiaan van Vuuren took four wickets in the first innings to restrict Western Province to 202. The Knights declared their innings on 373 for the loss of 8 wickets. Patrick Botha (80) and Isaac Dikgale scored 84 runs for the Knights. The match ended up in a draw.

Both teams played their last game against each other at the same venue last year. The Knights scored 422 runs in the first innings after Gihahn Cloete scored 92 runs. Beyers Swanepoel took five wickets. Patrick Kruger took five wickets in return to bowled Warriors on 134. Swanepoel took five wickets once again to end the Knights innings on 157.  Nhlakanipho Mpungose took four wickets in the last innings to help the Knights win the game by 161 runs.

TEAMS PREVIEW

Warriors Preview

Warriors are struggling in the longer format. They are yet to win a game this season. Jordan Hermann will open the innings with Diego Rosier. Hermann has 507 runs in 10 innings at an average above 50. He is their leading run-scorer and the batter to watch out for. Rosier has 54 runs in four innings. Jean du Plessis will come at number three. He has 89 runs in three games.

Matthew De Villiers will come in the middle with Senuran Muthusamy and Sinethemba Qeshile. De Villiers has 286 runs in 10 innings with three half-centuries. Muthusamy has 121 runs in three innings and has picked up three wickets with the ball. All hopes will be on Qeshile in the middle who has 358 runs at an average of 44. He scored a half-century in the last game.

Beyers Swanepoel will lead the bowling attack with Duanne Olivier, Shimane Alfred Mothoa, and Siya Plaatjie. Swanepoel is their leading wicket-taker with 21 wickets and an average of 16. He will be the bowler to watch out for. He had picked up 10 wickets against the Knights in their last game. On the other hand, Oliver has 15 wickets in 5 games. Besides these two no other bowler has picked up 10 or more wickets this season. 

Key Players: Beyers Swanepoel, Jordan Hermann, Sinethemba Qeshile.

Warriors Predicted Playing XI:

Jordan Hermann, Diego Rosier, Jean du Plessis, Matthew De Villiers, Sinethemba Qeshile (wk), Senuran Muthusamy (c), Patrick Kruger, Beyers Swanepoel, Duanne Olivier, Shimane Alfred Mothoa, Siya Plaatjie.

Knights Preview

Knights will eye to win the game to strengthen their fight for the first place in the points table. Jacques Snyman will open the innings with Lesego Senokwane. The duo scored individual half-centuries in the last game. Snymann has 191 runs at an average of 63 in two games. While Senokwane has 553 runs at an average of 69 with two centuries and two half-centuries. He will be the batter to watch out for. Isaac Dikgale will come at number three. He was the leading run-scorer in the last game with 84 runs. 

Patrick Botha will come in the middle with Dian Forrester and Tiaan van Vuuren. Botha scored 80 runs in the last game. He has 262 runs in 5 games at an average of 37. Forester is having a tough season and has scored at an average of 18. Van Vurren has played the role of an all-rounder in the three games he has played so far. He has 110 runs with the bat and 9 wickets with the ball.

Malusi Siboto will lead the bowling attack with Aaron Phangiso and skipper Dane Piedt. Siboto has 13 wickets in 5 games at an average of 22. On the other hand, Phagiso has 10 wickets with an economy of 2.15. Knights will hope for the return of Johannes van Dyk who has 11 wickets in two games. If he returns, he will be the bowler to watch out for.

Key Players: Lesego Senokwane, Jacques Snyman, Malusi Siboto.

Knights Predicted Playing XI:

Jacques Snyman, Lesego Senokwane, Gihahn Cloete (wk), Patrick Botha, Dian Forrester, Isaac Dikgale, Tiaan van Vuuren, Aaron Phangiso, Malusi Siboto, Dane Piedt (c), Sithembile Langa.

Weather Conditions

The weather at St George's Park, Gqeberha is expected to be cloudy on match day, with temperatures ranging between 18 and 26 degrees Celsius. Winds will blow from the southeast at 8-14 km/h. Rain is expected.  It is a batting-friendly pitch. As the game progresses and the pitch gets older, batsmen can play their shots comfortably. 

WAR vs KNG Pitch Report

The game will be played at St George's Park, Gqeberha between 20-24 March from 12:30 PM onwards. The stadium has a capacity of 19000 spectators. The venue has hosted 33 Tests, 43 ODIs and 10 T20Is.

Toss: To Bat

In 33 games played here, the results have favored teams defending the target on 15 occasions. The average first-innings score is 313, with the highest total of 549. The team winning the toss should bat first. The Titans have lost their last game at the same venue by 10 wickets.