EXCLUSIVE | Lions look to maintain momentum against Dolphins in 4-Day Series

The Lions put emphasis on starting competitions well as they look to set the tone for the rest of the season.

After wrapping up an innings victory inside three days against Western Province at Newlands last week, the Lions are set to take on the Dolphins at Kingsmead in Durban for the two teams' second round of the ongoing CSA 4-Day Series.

Similarly, the Dolphins have had a positive start to their campaign, beating Boland at home in Durban, with a number of players including opening batter Tshepang Dithole showing good form in the opening fixture.

In the Lions camp, the 23-year-old Connor Esterhuizen is the man in form, having smashed 175 at Newlands in Cape Town, helping the Lions get off to an impressive start to the season.

Esterhuizen told Independent Media that they put a lot of emphasis on starting the season well, a feat that has played a key role in the Johannesburg-based side's dominant performance against Province.

"We really put emphasis on starting the season well and starting a competition well, especially one that we are defending," said Esterhuizen on Tuesday.

"Setting the tone was very important because momentum is a massive thing so to try and get some early on with a packed first half of the competition was vital. Especially with us only playing seven games, if you can start the competition well it puts you in a great position."

Esterhuizen received solid support from batter Mitchell van Buuren (126) and all-rounder Evan Jones (76) as the Lions put up a mammoth 552/9 declared in Cape Town.

Esterhuizen described the partnerships as being ‘fun’ as they took Province’s bowling attack apart. At 23-years old, Esterhuizen highlighted that his knock also gave him the belief that he can perform at this level.

"It was a lot of fun. I had two great partners on the other end in Mitch and Evan, who played unbelievably well and took all the pressure off me, as well as guiding me through my innings," he said.

"That knock meant everything to me, it was a massive weight off my shoulders and it showed me more importantly than anyone that I can do it.

"It’s vital to get a great start to a competition, with us playing so few games, you can take the confidence into the rest of the competition, but always remembering that you start on 0 the next game."

The 4-Day Series fixture between the Dolphins and the Lions is scheduled to get underway on Wednesday at Kingsmead Stadium in Durban at 9am.