Muhammed Mayet crafted a patient and heroic captain’s innings to help the Mpumalanga Rhinos draw their CSA Division 2 four-day game against the Eastern Cape Iinyathi at Buffalo Park in East London on Sunday.
It was not the result the Iinyathi wanted, especially considering they had their foot on the neck of the Rhinos for the lion’s share of the game.
Skippers Nathan Roux and Mayet shook hands at 5.40pm with the Rhinos on 339 for the loss of eight wickets ahead on the second innings after being asked to follow on.
Jon Hinrichsen (34) and Smangaliso Nhlebela, on zero, were the men at the crease for the Rhinos with three overs remaining in the day.
The Rhinos had built a slight lead of 44.
Mayet played the role of a Lone Ranger and was resilient for the Rhinos in making his 103 in a marathon batting effort that lasted 507 minutes. He faced 351 balls.
The away team started the final day on 108 for three in the second innings, trailing by 187 runs.
With the bowling display that dismantled the Rhinos in the first innings for 195, it was thought Iinyathi were going to have it easy in the morning session and get the remaining seven wickets.
But the Rhinos had other plans.
Their overnight batters, Mayet and Yassar Cook, were in block mode from the get-go and showed early signs that their plan was to fight for a draw.
It took Cook 30 balls to finally break the shackles of his duck and register a run, while Mayet took almost five overs.
Iinyathi quicks Alindile Mhletywa, Chad Classen and Nico van Zyl got little assistance from the surface for the entire morning session.
And what made matters worse was that the Iinyathi were a strike bowler short after Thando Ntini was unable to bowl.
Cook and Mayet made use of the flatness of the pitch and assembled a 50-run partnership.
The only real chance Iinyathi got for a breakthrough was close to lunch when Cook hit the ball straight to spinner Lihle Sizani.
Iinyathi thought they had got their man, but the square-leg umpire adjudged the caught and bowled to have been a bump ball.
The Rhinos finished the first session on 177 for three.
They grabbed control again in the afternoon session, but Iinyathi dug deep to stop the easy flow from Cook and Mayet.
The duo reached their half centuries, and with the pressure building, Roux kept changing bowlers in search of wickets.
He introduced Classen into the attack, and the 28-year-old answered the call and broke the deadlock as he trapped Cook leg before wicket for 53.
A few overs later, he bowled Hermann Rofles for four, leaving the Rhinos on 198 runs for the loss of five wickets.
The Rhinos went into defensive mode again as the momentum swung into Iinyathi’s direction.
But again, they fought as Mayet and Aubrey Swanepoel took the Rhinos to tea on 240/5.
Kgaudi Molefe bowled Swanepoel for 37 at the start of the evening session, and Van Zyl did the same at the other end to Gareth Dukes.
Mayet was eventually trapped lbw by Sizani.
Iinyathi posted a mammoth 491 for eight in their first innings.
Batter Wian Ruthven scored a career first-class high of 194 and Jason Niemand chipped in with 114 while other major contributions came from Ntini (50) and Nico van Zyl (59).
Molefe had figures of 4/42 and Van Zyl 3/62 in dismissing the Rhinos in the first innings.
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