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Cape Town - Knights coach Nicky Boje acknowledges that a big week lies ahead for his side and four of the other teams chasing RAM SLAM T20 Challenge semi-final places ahead of their clash with the Cape Cobras at the Diamond Oval in Kimberley on Wednesday.
The Knights are currently fourth on the table with their Cape opponents second, but the pair are two of five teams separated by just four points heading into the final few games.
The Titans, who are defending champions, are the runaway leaders and have already secured themselves a home semi-final.
"There's only big games ahead now and it's definitely the business end of the competition, not just for us, but for everyone really, accept for the Titans," Boje said "There's quite a number of teams close to each other, so it's going to be a massively important week."
The Knights lost their latest game, a five-wicket reverse to the Titans, on Sunday and have not won any of their last three matches.
One of them was also a narrow loss to the Cobras in the first round, but Boje believes they are capable of turning things around.
"They've played well the last few games," he added. "We had a close one against them in Cape Town and we feel we have what it takes to beat them. I think we’re still a work in progress, we’re getting quite a lot of stuff right, but we're also doing a few things wrong. So we just need to make sure we put a complete performance together."
Cobras coach Ashwell Prince has seen his side make a remarkable U-turn after a torrid start to the season.
After losing their first three games, they stormed back to win the next three, before a washout against the Dolphins last Friday.
Now the coach of the Western Cape franchise is looking forward to the final passage of the season knowing that destiny is in their own hands.
"That's the most important thing," he said. "When you're trying to qualify for a something, you want things to be in your own hands and you don’t want to be depending on favours from other people.
"So we've got three games to go and if we win two out of the three we should secure a semi-final, if not a home semi-final. But we know it’s one step at a time and first up is the Knights, who are a dangerous side, so we’re expecting a tough game in Kimberley."
Play on Wednesday starts at 18:00.
