De Ridder reflects on Hollywoodbets Pro Series season and salutes the Badgers key contributors

With the Hollywoodbets Pro Series campaign set to conclude this weekend, Six Gun Grill Garden Route Badgers and Proteas Women wicketkeeper Mieke de Ridder looks back on a lesson-filled season while highlighting the characters who are the heartbeat of the Western Cape outfit.

The Garden Route Badgers currently sit fifth and sixth in the respective Hollywoodbets Pro 50 and Pro 20 standings, with their only two victories of the season coming in the 50-over format. Despite the limited success in terms of wins, the Badgers have secured their safety from relegation, thanks to results over the two-year cycle across both formats.

On a personal front, de Ridder acknowledges a season that has fallen short of her usual standards. She made just eight appearances across both formats, hampered by niggling injuries and national duty commitments during the final quarter of 2024.

Since returning to action for the Badgers in 2025, de Ridder has enjoyed more consistent game time, particularly in the One-Day format. Along with making a stumping and taking a catch behind the stumps, the wicketkeeper also contributed with the bat, recording a season-best score of 60 off 90 deliveries in a hard-fought defeat to local rivals World Sports Betting Western Province earlier this month.

Reflecting on her campaign and the importance of game time, de Ridder said: “The season has had a lot of ups and downs. I had a few poor performances out with the bat but kept on working and trusting the process and it came off in my last innings scoring some runs. Keeping-wise, I have felt really good throughout the season.

“⁠The game time has been vital. As cricketers, all we want to do is be on the field and give our best. Not getting as much game time as one would like has a way of bringing doubt to your mind and those have all been put to rest now with being able to spend some time in the middle doing what I love,” the 29-year-old added.

No team is complete without its characters, the personalities that bring energy, lift spirits and keep the atmosphere alive through the grind of a long season. For de Ridder, the Garden Route Badgers dressing room is full of such personalities.

“There are so many to pick from, as a unit we have a few “clowns” around so we always have a good laugh which stands out to me,” de Ridder remarked.

Among the leaders, de Ridder points to the inspirational presence of captain Nicolien Janse van Rensburg, who has played a pivotal role both with bat and ball throughout the campaign. “Personally, I feel our captain has led from the front with good knocks with the bat from sticky situations as well as leading with the ball.”

Every team has the unsung hero in their ranks, the players who consistently deliver without always receiving the spotlight. For the Badgers’ wicketkeeper, that player is seamer Khayakazi Mathe who has claimed 17 wickets across both competitions this season. “I feel she goes under the radar with her bowling but she keeps things real tight upfront and is very economical.”

De Ridder also praised head coach Martelize van der Merwe for her leadership and guidance throughout the season. The coach's emphasis on perspective proved crucial during testing times. “⁠She kept on reminding us of the bigger picture and I felt we used that as our driving force,” she added.

With just one weekend left in the Hollywoodbets Pro Series, the Badgers are eyeing a strong finish against the Knights in Bloemfontein, a final opportunity to express themselves in the 2024/25 campaign.

“Being the last game weekend of the season, we would just like to go out there and showcase our abilities as a team, something I feel we haven’t done as of yet. And of course, we would like to end off with two wins to just prove to ourselves that we belong in this division,” she concluded.

The final round of the Hollywoodbets Pro Series will see DP World Lions and World Sports Betting Western Province looking to clinch the title in the Hollywoodbets Pro50 and Pro20, respectively.

Meanwhile, the Hollywoodbets Dolphins still have a mathematical chance to lift the trophy in the 50 over format.