The ball is in Border's court. On Sunday, they will need another five wickets to secure a crucial Super Eight victory over Boland at Buffalo Park and all but book their passage to the Supersport Series final.

Victory for Border would take them to 75 points on the Super Eight log, 20 clear of Boland and 15 ahead of Easterns, who face each other in Paarl on the final weekend.

By the close of the third day, which arrived when wicket-keeper Manfred de Kock, apparently sent in as nightwatchman, was dismissed off the fourth ball of the 64th over, Boland, who were chasing a mammoth victory target of 394, were on 159 for five, as play was called for bad light 5.2 overs early.

That left Boland still 235 runs adrift of the required total, with all their hopes pinned on opener James Henderson, unbeaten overnight on 76, and the find of the latter part of the season, Henry Davids, who should join him at the crease at Sunday morning.

Henderson and skipper Louis Koen (62) added 108 for the second wicket after the early loss of Gerhard Strydom, but after wicketkeeper Ian Mitchell pulled off a superb catch, diving down the leg side, to remove Koen, the visitors lost three more wickets, including the crucial ones of Justin Ontong and Jonathan Trott, for 49 runs by the close.

Earlier, Steven Pope's 125 - he added 21 on Saturday morning -, 31 from Laden Gamiet and 28 from Vasbert Drakes, who was last man out, run out by 12th man Charl Langeveldt, helped Border post an impressive 354.

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