OBAKENG MELETSE
The T20 Challenge is heading towards its business end, and the Titans are looking to dethrone the Lions off their crown.
The first of three play-off qualifiers will get underway on Tuesday with the top two sides in the competition (Lions and Titans) vying for a place in the final. The Lions finished top of the log with 22 points, with the Titans following closely on 21 from seven matches.
The perks of also finishing in the top two will also mean that the side that comes at the wrong end of the stick on Tuesday will get a second shot against one of the North West Dragons or Western Province, who qualified third and fourth, respectively, in the eliminator play-off on Friday.
The Titans are the most successful franchise in this T20 competition, with seven titles against the five of the Johannesburg-based Lions. The last two editions have been shared by both sides, but only one of them will get a pass through to the final, with the loser going through a tougher route.
The visitors ran rampant in the round-robin stage with a thumping 117-run win after setting what still is the highest score of the tournament at 258/6.
The Lions, though, didn't take their loss lying down, and they have since made their intentions clear, bouncing back from their opening day defeat against their opponents to win a tightly contested race to the top.
Russell Domingo will be happy about the immediate impact his Proteas players have had since returning from international duty. Most notably, Rassie van der Dussen's knock of 59 off 38 when his side were under pressure played a huge role in them finishing top of the log after escaping with a narrow five-run victory against the Dragons this past weekend.
The Titans have consistently had the most balanced team in the tournament, but they have also blown hot and cold with two surprise losses against Western Province and the Knights.
The advantage they will carry into this contest will be the individual match winners they have on their side, as they can easily dictate the result of the match when they are on song.
Elsewhere, Western Province left it late to be confirmed as the final team in the top four, and they will need to come up with a better showing against a well-oiled Dragons side that just missed out on the top two spots when they clash on Wednesday at the Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg.