Crushed by nine wickets in Wednesday's first leg, Eastern Province found the bowlers to square their Standard Bank Cup semi-final against KwaZulu-Natal with a 28-run-run victory at Kingsmead on Friday night that takes the two sides into a sudden-death third leg at the same venue on Sunday.

Where EP both batted and bowled poorly on Wednesday, they rediscovered their game on Friday, defending a total of 225 for eight by bowling Natal out for 197 in 40.5 overs.

Meyrick Pringle broke through the top of the Natal batting with a beautiful opening spell of controlled swing bowling that reduced the home side to 27 for three and then when he came off, Nantie Hayward took over.

Left out of the EP team on Wednesday, Hayward returned to bowl a characteristic mixture of wides and unplayable balls to take three wickets as the middle order crumbled and at 52 for six Natal seemed dead and buried.

But not as far as Lance Klusener was concerned. The left-hander smashed 51 off just 32 balls to revive Natal hopes and it seemed another 10 overs of his hitting might turn the game around completely. But there was yet another twist to come as Dave Callaghan came into the attack to concede a six and a four off his first four balls before bowling Klusener off a bottom edge.

Callaghan then trapped Jon Kent leg before at 125 for eight but it wasn't quite finished. Shaun Pollock and Eldine Baptiste put on for the ninth wicket, but when Pollock went, miscuing a pull off Garnett Kruger to mid on, Natal had to resign themselves to returning to the same ground on Sunday.

Last man in Jon Bastow hit Hayward for six, but was bowled by a slower one to give Hayward figures of four for 42 while Pringle ended with three for 29.

Earlier, EP had improved on their dismal batting on Wednesday night, but still seemed to have left themselves short as Gulam Bodi produced best ever figures of five for 46 in his nine overs.

The visitors were given a much improved start with Robin Peterson pushed up the order to open and he responded by clubbing 38 off just 29 balls. He was out the ball after colliding heavily with the Natal wicketkeeper Errol Stewart, but Callaghan and James Bryant added 59 for the fourth wicket to steady the innings with Callaghan eventually making 56 and Bryant 44.

EP, however, never really managed to push it through as Gulam Bodi, bowling left-arm wristspin came into the attack, taking best ever figures of five for 46. His victims included both Bryant and Callaghan and he also managed to give Stewart two stumpings.

The real value of his spell, though, was to check EP in their tracks by taking his wickets at regular intervals and the visiting side surely ended their innings believing they had fallen 15 or 20 short of a total that once seemed to be within their grasp.

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