Port Elizabeth - Craig Thyssen bludgeoned 22 runs off eight balls to lead the Chevrolet Warriors to a four-wicket win over the Nashua Dolphins in their Standard Bank Pro20 semi-final first-leg at Axxess DSL St. George’s on Friday.
   
Chasing the Dolphins’ score of 128 for five, the Warriors began the penultimate over of their innings still needing 19 runs to win.

But the powerfully-built Thyssen tore into Dolphins’ seamer Yasir Arafat by scoring 19 runs off five balls in a sequence reading 6, 2, 4, 6, 1 as the Warriors reached 129 for six with seven balls of their innings remaining.
   
Thyssen ended not out as the Warriors drew first blood in the best-of-three semi-final series.
   
Veteran paceman Makhaya Ntini had been the home side’s star performer with the ball as he claimed three for 19 off four overs to put the Dolphins under early pressure.
   
After the Dolphins had won the toss and elected to bat on a very slow pitch, the 33-year-old Ntini picked up three wickets in five balls to leave the visitors reeling on 29 for three in the seventh over.
   
But the Dolphins dug themselves out of the precarious situation thanks to a fourth-wicket stand of 63 between Ahmed Amla and Vaughn van Jaarsveld (31).
   
Amla top-scored for the Durban-based franchise thanks to his maiden Pro20 half-century as he ended not out on 52 off 41 balls which included five fours and a six.
   
The Warriors looked to be in a spot of bother as they slipped to 106 for six in their reply with medium-pacer Jon Kent picking up three for 25, including the key wickets of Mark Boucher (20) and Davy Jacobs (27).
   
But Thyssen rose to the occasion to turn what looked like a difficult situation into a relatively comfortable win. 
   
The second-leg between the two teams will be played at Sahara Stadium Kingsmead in Durban on Friday, March 4.

    SCOREBOARD

    Dolphins innings
    L. Bosman c Prince b Ntini 13
    D. Conway b Ntini 16
    D. Miller c Boucher b Ntini 0
    V. van Jaarsveld c Theron b Smuts 31
    A. Amla not out 52
    D. Smit c Thyssen b Boje 4
    Y. Arafat not out 10
    Extras (lb-1, w-1) 2
    Total (for five wickets, 20 overs) 128
  
Fall of wickets: 1-18, 2-18, 3-29, 4-92, 5-104.
Did not bat: I. Khan, J. Kent, K. Abbott, K. Maharaj.
Bowling: Ntini 4-0-19-3, Theron 4-0-25-0, Meyer 3-0-25-0, Kreusch 3-0-14-0, Boje 4-0-23-1, Kruger 1-0-7-0, Smuts 1-0-14-1 (w-1).

    Warriors innings
    D. Jacobs lbw b Kent 27
    A. Prince lbw b Arafat 5
    N. Boje c Conway b Kent 17
    M. Boucher b Khan 20
    J-J Smuts b Kent 19
    J. Kreusch c Khan b Arafat 10
    C. Thyssen not out 22
    L. Meyer not out 3
    Extras (w-6) 6
    Total (for six wickets, 18.5 overs) 129
   
Fall of wickets: 1-9, 2-36, 3-72, 4-77, 5-91, 6-106.
Did not bat: G. Kruger, J. Theron, M. Ntini.
Bowling: Kent 4-0-25-3 (w-1), Arafat 3.5-0-41-2 (w-3), Abbott 3-0-24-0, Maharaj 4-0-15-0, Khan 3-0-16-1 (w-1), Amla 1-0-8-0 (w-1).

Master Blaster batsman: Ahmed Amla

Master Blaster bowler: Makhaya Ntini