Hollywoodbets Dolphins back to defend their red ball title
This
week the Hollywoodbets Dolphins will be out to get their CSA 4-Day Domestic
Series campaign off to the best possible start when they host the AET Tuskers
in their competition opener at Hollywoodbets Kingsmead Stadium starting on
Saturday.
Red ball cricket has been a strong part of the Dolphins DNA over the past few seasons with the Dolphins winning two 4-Day titles in the last three seasons which shows their prowess over the longer form of the game.
In a change from last season, SJ Erwee will take over the captaincy for the Dolphins during the competition as the Dolphins aim to defend their title.
They will face the newly promoted Tuskers in their opener at home, a venue that has been very kind to the Dolphins over the last few seasons and have proved to be difficult for visiting teams to master.
Following some strong red ball form in recent seasons, head coach of the Hollywoodbets Dolphins Imraan Khan wants his chargers to refocus for the coming competition.
"We had a brilliant red ball campaign last season, but we start afresh and cannot focus on what happened last season," Khan said.
"The team worked really hard on their red ball skills, and we still see it as the ultimate competition to win domestically and we'll be out to do it again this season.
"There are a lot of tough teams to play in the competition and we know that getting results in four days can be hard so we will need to play good, consistent cricket."
The Dolphins squad will rely on the majority of the players that won them the trophy at the end of the 2022/23 season and Khan is happy he has that experience to lean on.
"We've got a strong core of experienced players that will lead us again in this competition.
"They proved their trophy winning abilities and we are confident that the side can produce more good results this season.
"It's another exciting opportunity for the guys to showcase their red ball skills and we are looking forward to this competition," Khan added.
It will be a busy festive season for the Dolphins who have a schedule of five four-day matches between the beginning of November and Christmas which means a strong start to the competition will be vital.
Dolphins Squad vs Tuskers
SJ Erwee (c), Slade van Staden, Tristan Naicker, Sean Gilson, Tshepang Dithole, Ottniel Baartman, Okuhle Cele, Bryce Parsons, Marques Ackerman, Jason Smith, Jon-Jon Smuts, Andile Simelane, Odirile Modimokoane
