Dolphins vs Western Province, CSA 4-Day Division 1, Today Match Prediction 30 October 2024

DOL vs WPR Match Prediction & Analysis

The CSA 4-Day Division 1 season 2024-25 is about to commence in Durban. The Dolphins will take on Western Province in the tournament opener on 30 October. This is South Africa’s top domestic first-class cricket tournament, which will end on 10 April 2025. The competition features Division 1 teams across the country and is structured in a round-robin format, accruing points to determine the finalists.

The Dolphins were 4th in the points table last season, whereas the Western Province made the finals. The Western Province, however, lost to the Lions and thus ended the season as runners-up. Can the Western Province push for the title this time, or will the Dolphins come back strongly to claim one of the top two spots? An exciting series is coming up.

TEAMS PREVIEW

Dolphins Preview

The Dolphins will play Western Province, last year's finalists, in the opening game of CSA 4-Day Division I, Season 2024-25, at Durban. The Dolphins finished the last season in fourth place in the points table after 2 wins, 1 loss, and 4 draws in 7 games.

The Dolphins will have horror memories of their last match against Western Province. It was their last game of the last season, and Western Province defeated them by an innings and 259 runs. It was a crucial game for the Dolphins to qualify for the finals. However, the way Western Province crushed them would remain in their memory for a very long time.

After conceding a huge score of 592 for 6 against Western Province, the Dolphins had two collapses in two innings. In the first one, they scored 202, and following on in the second innings, they could manage only 131 runs. There was not even a single half-century across both the innings. The Dolphins need to brush this past them and start the season anew against Western Province.

Key players: Marques Ackerman, Daryn Dupavillon, Sarel Erwee, JJ Smuts

Dolphins Predicted Playing XI:

Sarel Erwee (c), Tshepang Dithole (wk), Marques Ackerman, Bryce Parsons, Jason Smith, JJ Smuts, Eathan Bosch, Prenelan Subrayen, Okuhle Cele, Andile Simelane, Ottniel Baartman

Western Province Preview

Western province has been one of the top teams in the CSA 4Day Division 1 tournament. They narrowly missed the title in the last season, losing to Lions by 99 runs. The loss would hurt more because in that final they had Lions reduced to 5 for 35 in the first innings of the match. However, they allowed the Lions lower order to take the team to 225. Western ProvinceR did get a substantial first inning lead and had Lions reduced to 6 for 113 in the second innings as well. 

The match looked over for the Lions, but Western Province could not close the Lions' second innings and allowed Delano Potgieter to score a swashbuckling 155 runs, taking the Lions' second-inning score to 394. Needing 308 to win in the final innings, Western Province folded for 208 runs, losing the match by 99 runs, a game that they should have won comfortably.

However, Western Province must feel confident against the Dolphins because of how they defeated them in their last match. It was a crucial game for Western Province that helped them finish in the top two and appear in last season's finals. It was a huge innings defeat that they would and take confidence in while going into this match in the series opener against the Dolphins.

Key players: Beuran Hendricks, Tony de Zorzi, Kyle Simmonds

Western Province Predicted Playing XI:

Tony de Zorzi, Daniel Smith, Yaseen Vallie, Gavin Kaplan, Kyle Verreynne (c & wk), Valintine Kitime, Onke Nyaku, Kyle Simmonds, Beuran Hendricks, Nandre Burger, Wesley Bedja

Weather Conditions

The weather on the match day at Kingsmead in Durban is forecasted to be partly cloudy, with temperatures reaching a high of around 23°C and a low of 18°C. The conditions would be generally dry, and there is no chance of rain on the match day. It's a good day to start a multi-day game.

DOL vs WPR Pitch Report

Kingsmead, Durban, is a historic and iconic cricket venue in South Africa. It was established in 1923 and hosted its first Test the same year between South Africa and England. It has hosted numerous international cricket matches across Test, ODI, and T20Is. Yuvraj Singh's sixth consecutive sixes against Stuart Broad happened at this venue in the ICC T20 World Cup 2007. The ground is decently big, with a seating capacity of around 25,000.

Toss: To Bat

Overall, 45 tests have been played at Durban, with 31 ending in outright results. 18 of them have been won by the teams batting first, while 13 have been won by the teams batting second. Looks like the conditions favour the team batting first more often. The team winning the toss should look to bat first here.