Mbulelo Dube grabbed career-best figures of 4-26 as WSB Western Province secured a much-needed five-wicket victory over the Hollywoodbets Dolphins at WSB Newlands in Cape Town on Sunday afternoon.
The victory moves Western Province to 18 points and secures their spot in the playoffs of this season’s competition with the Dolphins needing just one victory from their remaining two matches to book their place.
MATCH RESULT | WSB Western Province won by 5 wickets, 139/5 (18.1).
— Western Province Men (@WP_Blitz) November 16, 2025
Bayoumy (10*), Pilay (20*). Van Heerden 43, Linde 28.#WesternProvince #T20Challenge #WPCricket #BoysInBlue💙 #WSBWP🧡 #WSBNewlands pic.twitter.com/cxqavjaW2L
Dube’s effort, after Daniel Smith had won the toss and deciding to bowl first, was key in disrupting the Dolphins’ top-order, claiming all for of the first wickets to fall.
The right-arm medium-pacer bagged the wickets of Tshepang Dithole (22), Jon-Jon Smuts (10), Bryce Parsons (12) and Eathan Bosch (0) to see the visitors struggling on 63-4 in the 10th over, on their way to a below-par total of 138-7.
Dithole, after facing 16 balls and striking four boundaries, cut Dube straight to Abdullah Bayoumy on the point boundary.
Smuts tried to ramp Dube, but sent the ball straight into the gloves of Smith behind the stumps while Parsons cut straight to Valentine Kitime at backward point.
Bosch bottom-edged to Smith without scoring.
Leus du Plooy tried valiantly to resurrect the innings with a 25-ball 31, which included three boundaries, but when he tried to reverse-sweep legspinner Josh Breed (4-0-32-2), he popped the ball up and into Smith’s gloves.
Breed also accounted for Romashan Pillay (2), caught on the deep mid-wicket fence by Eddie Moore.
George Linde (4-0-18-1) was economical as always and picked up the scalp of Gomolemo Phiri, clean-bowling the wicketkeeper-batsman for just 14.
Andile Simelane struck two massive sixes off Bayoumy (3-0-25-0) and ended unbeaten on 28 from 18 balls while Nqobani Mokoena struck one mighty blow, ending on 10 not out from 6 balls.
SOME FLUTTERS FOR WP
The target of 138 would be difficult to defend but the Dolphins bowlers would do everything they could to make it difficult.
Kitime (4) top-edged Bosch (4-0-37-1) to Parsons at wide mid-on early on but Moore (23) and Josh van Heerden (43) laid the best platform on a slowing pitch.
The pair added 60 runs for the second wicket from just 45 deliveries before Moore, who had been given two lives on seven and 19, finally fell to Smuts (3-0-11-2), caught at short mid-wicket by Simelane.
Smith (2) came and went quickly, reverse-sweeping Smuts straight to Dithole in the covers, which made it a mid-wicket catch.
Linde came in and blasted three fours and a six from 17 balls but then was brilliantly caught one-handed by Parsons (3-0-14-2) off his own bowling.
Some flutters were being experienced in the Western Province camp when Van Heerden tried to reverse-sweep Parsons and was trapped leg before.
Van Heerden’s 36-ball innings included four boundaries and a six.
However, Jiveshan Pillay (20 not out) and Bayoumy (10 not out) carried their side over the line with an unbroken stand of 25 from 21 deliveries to hand Province a vital five-wicket win with 11 balls to spare.
Province host the DP World Lions on Friday in their final league match while the Dolphins face off against the Momentum Multiply Titans in Centurion on Friday before finishing off at home against the Lions on Sunday 23 November.
WESTERN PROVINCE: Eddie Moore, Valentine Kitime, Joshua van Heerden, Daniel Smith (capt & wk), George Linde, Abdullah Bayoumy, Josh Breed, Raeeq Daniels, Jivesham Pillay, Mbulelo Dube, Mthiwekhaya Nabe..
DOLPHINS: Tshepang Dithole, Jon-Jon Smuts (capt), Bryce Parsons, Leus du Plooy, Eathan Bosch, Gomolemo Phiri (wk), Romashan Pillay, Andile Simelane, Nqobani Mokoena, Aryan Gopalan, Anrich Nortje.
