Big test on the road for Friend’s Dolphins in Bloem

The Hollywoodbets Dolphins travel to Bloemfontein to face the Knights in the CSA 4-Day Domestic Series this week looking for that first win of the campaign.

The men from Durban have lost one and drawn one so far in the competition and are hoping that they can continue to grow into the tournament and get that first win this week in the Free State.

They will be playing a strong Knights side that have been in reasonable form this campaign with a win, a draw and a loss from their opening three matches so far.

“We knew what we had to work on after the Western Province game and I think that we took that into the Titans match that was unfortunately dominated by weather,” Dolphins head coach Quinton Friend said.

“With that said we are completely focused on this game against the Knights because it’s going to be an important game for us.

“The squad knows how important the next two matches are for us to set us up for the December break.”

The Dolphins squad has been hit by injuries throughout the season and they will welcome back Andile Simelane for this week’s clash but will still be without key players like Marques Ackerman and Eathan Bosch.

Young Glenwood student and SA under-19 quick Ntando Soni has been included in the squad as the Dolphins continue to try and increase their depth.

The fast bowler will feature for the Dolphins Under-18 team at the upcoming Khaya Majola Week.

There was a week off for the Dolphins this past week and coach Friend feels that they used that time off wisely.

“We spent some time focusing on our spin play as well as just fine tuning our option taking from a batting point of view.

“From a bowling point of view we worked hard on our consistency and the guys have trained really well over this past week,” Friend added.

“The guys are looking forward to stamping their authority on the game and the competition as well this week.

“Bloemfontein can be a tough place to go and play cricket because it can be dry and hot, but the team is relishing the challenge.”

For this week’s clash there are two potential debutants with Ntando Soni and Hanu Viljoen included in the squad. Viljoen made his T20 debut for the Dolphins earlier in the season but hasn’t featured in the 4-Day Series yet.

Hollywoodbets Dolphins v Knights Squad: Okuhle Cele, Ntando Soni, Andile Simelane, Slade van Staden, Romashen Pillay, Sarel Erwee, Daryn Dupavillon, Banele Cele, Bryce Parsons, Tshepang Dithole, Jon-Jon Smuts, Hanu Viljoen, Prenelan Subrayen, Jason Smith.