The title’s on the line for Lions, Titans and Warriors in final round of Four-Day Series

Johannesburg — The last round of the Four-Day Series starts on Friday morning and with everything else that’s going on in South African cricket, nevermind the rest of the world right now, you’d be forgiven for going: ‘Huh?’

Mostly due to Covid, the country’s premier first class competition, has been shifted, reduced, and set back and now concludes with a single round finale of four matches, with three teams in line to annex the trophy.

Two of those teams — the Central Gauteng Lions and the Northern Titans — face each other at SuperSport Park. The third team, the Warriors from Gqeberha, play the Knights in Bloemfontein. Naturally it's complicated as to how the final winner will emerge (see below).

Until the last round of matches at the end of January, the Lions had control of the competition thanks to the quartet of quick bowlers who dominated the first four rounds. However Gauteng were victims of that success; they lost Duanne Olivier to the Proteas from the start of the India series, Lutho Sipamla toured New Zealand, and Sisanda Magala was roped into the squad for the One-Day series with India

In addition their batting ace this summer, Ryan Rickelton was also part of various national squads and has only played four of the six matches. Going into the final round, the Lions will be without their multi-format national players; Temba Bavuma, Rassie van der Dussen and Kagiso Rabada, which they’d long ago anticipated. However, they will also be without, Sipamla, Olivier and Wiaan Mulder who have just returned from New Zealand.

Fortunately it appears that Rickelton will take up his place in the starting side at SuperSport Park. The left-hander has been one the in-form batters in the competition, and averages 118.25 in five