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Spinners see Warriors home

East London - Accurate spin bowling helped the Warriors to a 31-run victory over the Knights in their 1 Day Cup 50-over match at Buffalo Park in East London on Friday.

The trio of Johan Botha, Nicky Boje and Jon-Jon Smuts restricted the Knights to 234 for nine wickets as overs ran out on a slow track, chasing the Warriors earlier total of 265 for seven from their allotted 50 overs.

The hosts' new captain, Colin Ingram, won the toss and electing to bat first.

Botha finished with 2/32 off his 10 overs, Smuts captured 3/48 (from nine overs) with Boje returning economical figures of 0/30 from 10 overs.

Werner Coetsee (66 not out) was the top scorer for the Knights while Charl Pietersen mastered a hard-hit 41 -- adding some respectability to the innings that was reeling on 119 for seven wickets at the time.

Coetsee enjoyed life early on when he was dropped on four by Botha at cover off Proteas team-mate Lonwabo Tsotsobe, going on to make a grafted half-century from 90 balls.

The Knights skipper, Morne van Wyk, made a quick-fire 28 at the top of the innings with Riley Rossouw's 29 giving the visitors some hope of a successful chase on a wicket that saw them lapse behind the required scoring rate for most of the innings.

Earlier in the day, Smuts had notched up 98 for the Warriors, supported by Justin Kreusch (42) and a cameo 27 from Craig Thyssen.

Smuts and Ingram compiled 46 runs for the opening wicket, before the latter was the first man out, spectacularly caught by Ryan Bailey on the boundary off Dillon du Preez in the 10th over.

Smuts went on to add 85 runs with veteran Kreusch for the fourth-wicket, going on to his 11th limited-overs half-century from 69 balls, containing five boundaries.

Kreusch fell on 42, with Smuts back in the hut four runs later, having been caught and bowled by Coetsee - two runs shy of a century.

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