CAPE TOWN - Cape Cobras captain Dane Piedt believes his team have the bowling arsenal to lay a serious claim for first-class honours this season.
The Cobras open their 2018-19 campaign at Newlands on Monday against a strong Knights outfit, and Piedt is eager to get the ball rolling.
“It is exciting to be outdoors again. I think before this weekend the last outdoor net I had was in Bangalore (with the South Africa A side), and that was in August, so really looking forward to getting out there and getting going again.
“We have a couple bowlers coming through. I am really excited to see Tladi Bokako. He is a new signing and I’m keen to see how he goes. Rory is back as well,” Piedt said.
Bokako arrived in Cape Town during the winter, and already impressed during the pre-season trips to Durban and Johannesburg, where he claimed a five-for in one warm-up match against the Dolphins. He will be guided by two Cobras stalwarts alongside Dane Paterson and Rory Kleinveldt, with the ever-improving Mthiwekhaya Nabe eager to produce another good season.
All the prep work is done, onto the first match of the season against @KnightsCricket starting @NewlandsCricket tomorrow... pic.twitter.com/x2SXRIYeiH
— COBRAS CRICKET (@CobrasCricket) September 30, 2018
After last season’s credible third-place finish, Piedt believes the key to moving up the table revolves around a change of tactics.
“What I want as a captain, we had a discussion in Durban and Joburg, I want them to bowl a fuller length. In South Africa, it is important to pitch the ball up, that’s you create chances, the leader of the attack is Patto and Rory, they are quite experienced and they bowl a fuller length,” the off-spinning captain said.
“We have the arsenal to run through batting line-ups, but it comes with respect for the game and the opposition, and we need to follow the process to claim those 20 wickets that eluded us last year.”