Klusener Appointed Dolphins Interim Coach

South Africa domestic news

Firdose Moonda

January 25, 2012

Lance Klusener, the former South Africa allrounder, has been appointed interim coach of the Dolphins, the Durban-based franchise, until the end of the 2011-12 season. Klusener replaces Graham Ford, who resigned with immediate effect last week and has been confirmed as Sri Lanka's new coach.

Klusener, best remembered for his Man-of-the-Series performance in the 1999 World Cup, retired from international cricket in 2004 and has since had a range of cricket-related work. He has a Level 3 coaching qualification and has been involved with age-group sides at the Dolphins for the last three years. He has also worked with the South African High Performance Program and assisted the South Africa A side.

"Being a former Dolphin, I am very proud of my team and want to be part of the process of rebuilding the team to its rightful place as South Africa's No. 1 franchise," Klusener said.

The Dolphins have not won a trophy since they shared the SuperSport Series in the 2004-05 season, and are targetting the upcoming domestic Twenty20 competition as an opportunity for silverware. They have contracted Chris Gayle for the series and had also lined up Australia quick Shaun Tait, but he pulled out with an elbow injury.

"We are still focused on the T20 competition," Faeez Jaffer, the Dolphins president, said. "With Lance's vast experience at our disposal, we believe that our players will be challenged and want to perform. Lance also has first-hand knowledge of the dynamics and makeup of our team."

Jesse Chellan, the Dolphins chief-executive, told ESPNcricinfo that the franchise is still looking for another big-name player.

The mid-season change of coach has not affected the Dolphins team, Chellan said. The senior players filled the gap and have been organising and running team practices. "Team leadership stepped in and everything has been running well," Chellan said.

The Dolphins will soon undertake a formal process to recruit a new head coach for the start of next season.

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Afridi and Razzaq will not Participate in South Africa's T20 Competition

South Africa T20 series

Firdose Moonda

January 23, 2012

Shahid Afridi and Abdul Razzaq will not travel to play in South Africa's domestic 20-over competition. The Pakistan duo was signed up by the Johannesburg-based Lions franchise, whose chief executive Cassim Docrat confirmed to ESPNcricinfo that neither will participate in the tournament.

National duty will keep Afridi away from The Wanderers. Pakistan play four ODIs and three T20s against England between February 13 and 27. Afridi will then play two matches for the Dhaka Gladiators in the Bangladesh Premier League and will likely also be involved in the Asia Cup which is scheduled for March 12 to 22. The South African tournament runs over six weeks from February 15 which will clash with both these events.

Razzaq recently had a shoulder injury which kept him out of Pakistan's end-of-year tour to Bangladesh. He played for the Melbourne Renegades in the Big Bash League, alongside Afridi, but has not been performing to standard. He scored 42 runs in six matches and took two wickets for a bloated 123 runs. Docrat said the decision was taken from the Lions side not to pursue the engagement with Razzaq.

The withdrawal of the Pakistan pair leaves the South African competition with just one of its four major signings. Shaun Tait, the Australia fast bowler, pulled out of the Durban-based Dolphins squad two weeks ago with an elbow injury. Only Chris Gayle is still confirmed, for the Dolphins, though there was some speculation about his availability following his hefty deal with the Bangladesh Premier League.

Gayle was bought for US$ 551,000 by Barisal and will only play a handful of matches in Dhaka. The amount he is being paid by the BPL is reportedly eight times more than the Dolphins are dishing out for him but they have received a guarantee from Gayle's management.

"When I saw that he was involved in the Bangladesh Premier League I called his agent to see if it would affect his South African deal," Jesse Chellan, chief executive of the Dolphins said. "His agent has assured us that he will be available for the full campaign. He is due to arrive on February 16."

The Dolphins are still searching for a replacement for Tait. Chellan said the BPL has "hampered us," in the search to find suitable foreign players. Kieron Pollard and Sohail Tanvir were also on the radar of some South African franchises but have both been contracted by the BPL.

The Lions are close to signing Dirk Nannes while the Cobras and Titans have secured the services of Owais Shah and Alfonso Thomas respectively. One of the other names mentioned is that of Dwayne Bravo, who was not picked up at the BPL.

The six South African franchises are allowed to contract two foreign players each. The yet-to-be-named to seventh franchise, which will be announced this week and will comprise of the best semi-professional cricketers in the country, will be allowed four. However, with the prospects thinning out it seems likely that the tournament will be without the glam factor that a foreign contingent brings, leaving the competition at risk of being the lowest in profile among its counterparts.

The IPL leads the pack but T20 competitions in other countries have followed suit. The BBL, the BPL and even Zimbabwe's Stanbic T20 featured some of the games marquee 20-over cricketers while South Africa's does not even have a name or a sponsor yet.

The ongoing bonus scandal has kept corporates away from CSA over the past summer. They played the T20s and one-day series against Australia without a backer and secured cooking oil manufacturer Sunfoil ahead of the two Tests. Sunfoil have stayed on for the Sri Lanka series and extended their agreement to include the one-day series.

Standard Bank sponsored the 20-over competition since its inception but pulled out at the end of last season when they cancelled all their sports sponsorships. CSA are still in negotiations for a replacement but the recent resignation of their commercial manager, Richard Glover, has set them further back. With the competition little over three weeks away, the possibility of the tournament being funded entirely by CSA is looming.

A source close to CSA said the body can handle the costs "for now," although the format of the 20-over competition was altered to cater for a specific sponsor. A seventh franchise was included and the teams will play a double-round of fixtures instead of just one match against each of the other teams as was previously the case. "At least CSA have stuck to the new format and have not downgraded the event just because there is no sponsor yet," the source said.

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Cobras in final, du Preez steals thriller for Knights

Samit Patel Opts out of IPL Auction

ESPNcricinfo staff

December 1, 2011

Cape Cobras booked their place in the final with a comprehensive win over Dolphins at Newlands that took the winners to the top of the table. A collective bowling effort helped Cobras bowl out their opponents for just 185. Half-centuries from opener Khayelihle Zondo and Cody Chetty - the pair added 84 for the fifth wicket - were the only significant contributions from the Cobras, who lost three wickets to Rory Kleinveldt and two to Dale Steyn. Jacques Kallis starred with the bat for Cobras, making a quickfire 78 in an innings that included five fours and five sixes. He helped his team reach its target in just 29 overs, securing a bonus point, a place at the top of the table and a place in the final.

Warriors had already qualified for the knockouts and had to settle for a place in the semi-final after losing to the Titans in Centurion. In a closely-fought game, half-centuries from Heino Kuhn, Faf du Plessis, Farhaan Behardien and David Wiese took Titans past the Warriors score of 294 in the penultimate over. Wiese smashed 82 off 51 balls, with five fours and six sixes, and was involved in a match-winning 119-run partnership with Behardien, who made an unbeaten 52. In a game with as many as seven half-centuries, JJ Smuts, Ashwell Prince and Justin Kreusch chipped in for Warriors to set up a formidable total but they were outdone by their opponents. Warriors will take on Knights in the semi-final on December 4. The winner takes on Cobras in the final on December 9.

Knights beat Lions in a thriller in Johannesburg by one wicket. Set a target of 251, the Knights seemed virtually out of contention at 172 for 8 after seamer Craig Alexander took 4 for 47. But half-centuries from Aubrey Swanepoel and Dillon du Preez triggered an amazing turnaround. It helped that Knights bat deep and the ninth-wicket pair added 62 in 45 balls. Swanepoel was the more watchful of the two, making 54 in 73 and was run out in the 48th over, still 17 short of the target. du Preez, on the other hand, was unstoppable, smashing five sixes in a breezy 52 that helped his team clinch victory with a ball to spare. He made those runs off just 26 deliveries and had No.11 Malusi Siboto at the other end.

du Preez's innings was part of a splendid all-round effort. His picked up five wickets with his seamers to help bowl out Lions for a chaseable score. This, after three of their batsmen - Alviro Peterson, Neil McKenzie and Thami Tsolekile - scored half-centuries.

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Kallis to make season debut for Cobras

South Africa domestic news

Firdose Moonda

November 30, 2011

Jacques Kallis is expected to play his first franchise game of the season when Cape Cobras host Dolphins in the Franchise 1-Day Cup today. Kallis moved back to his home franchise after three seasons at the Eastern Cape-based Warriors, but he has not had the opportunity to play domestic cricket this year because of international and IPL commitments.

After returning from the Champions League Twenty20, where he played for Kolkata Knight Riders, Kallis played the home series against Australia. He scored two half-centuries in three ODIs but managed only 58 runs in four innings during the Tests. Given the domestic schedule, Kallis will be able to play for Cobras only in the one-dayers. Richard Pybus, the Cobras coach, said he will do whatever he can to give Kallis the necessary match practice.

"From a big picture perspective, it's critical that national players are playing domestic cricket whenever they can," Pybus told ESPNCricinfo. " There is a lot of cricket for them coming up, so we have to be able to manage guys like Jacques over a long season and make informed, judicious decisions about how much they should be playing."

For Pybus, Kallis' return to Cobras is an advantage because many of the young players look up to him as a local hero. "We win all-round because the youngsters want to play alongside him, the standard of cricket is lifted when the national players are involved and it becomes more attractive for the public to watch," Pybus said. "It's his cricketing home. He is playing for a team that he has an emotional connection with."

Although Kallis' Test performances, particularly with the bat, were not a reason for major concern, there were aspects of his game that could do with polishing. Kallis was roughed up by 18-year old fast bowler, Pat Cummins, who used his pace and the short ball effectively. He was also ineffective with the ball against Australia, taking one wicket in 28 overs at an average of 121 in the Tests.

Pybus said he had offered Kallis assistance if the allrounder wanted it ahead of the Tests against Sri Lanka, which begin on December 15. "I have asked him if there is anything he would like me to have a look at, but Jacques knows his game," Pybus said. "He knows what he is doing."

Cobras are on top the Franchise 1-Day Cup table and victory against Dolphins on Wednesday will guarantee them a home final. The second and third placed teams will square off in the only semi-final to determine the other finalist.

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Lions complete maiden victory

Franchise 1-Day Cup, 2011-12

ESPNcricinfo staff

November 26, 2011

Centuries from Alviro Petersen and Jonathan Vandiar led Lions to a 29-run win on the D/L method against Dolphins in Potchefstroom, their first victory of the Franchise 1-Day Cup after five defeats and two no-results. Petersen scored an unbeaten 145 off 144 balls and Vandiar made 109 in an opening partnership of 232, which ended in the 41st over. Rain forced Lions' innings to end on 284 for 2 after 47 overs. The Dolphins' target was revised to 287.

Dolphins stumbled early in their chase and were 65 for 3 before a steadying partnership between Divan van Wyk and Daryn Smit. They were 145 for 4 after 31.5 overs when the floodlights failed at Senwes Park and ten overs were lost as a result. Dolphins now had a revised target of 227 in 37 overs. They lost wickets in a hurry in the pursuit of quick runs after the resumption and finished on 197 for 8. Smit was the top-scorer with 67 while Cliffe Deacon took 2 for 27 in seven overs.

Cape Cobras claimed top spot in the league with a six-wicket win against Warriors at Newlands. Warriors suffered from a regular loss of wickets after choosing to bat: their largest partnership was 50, between Arno Jacobs and Colin Ingram for the second wicket. Jacobs made 55, and Johan Botha contributed an unbeaten 57 at No. 6, but contributions from the others were meagre. Justin Kemp took 3 for 34, while Johann Louw, Charl Langeveldt and Rory Kleinveldt claimed two wickets each as Warriors were dismissed for 244 in 50 overs.

Cobras were jolted early in their chase, with Makhaya Ntini dismissing Graeme Smith and Andrew Puttick to reduce them to 19 for 2 in 6.5 overs. Half-centuries from Owais Shah and JP Duminy, however, steadied the innings and Justin Ontong scored 65 off 62 balls to help his team reach the target in 46.5 overs.

Knights medium-pacer Malusi Siboto took 5 for 38 to dismiss Titans for 186 in 39.5 overs and set up a three-wicket victory for his team in in Kimberley. Six of Titans' top seven batsmen made double-figure scores but no one managed more than Faf du Plessis' 40. They lost wickets in two clutches, to slip from 59 for 1 to 97 for 4, and then from 153 for 4 to 186 all out.

Knights scored briskly in their chase but also lost wickets too regularly for comfort. They did not have a half-century partnership in their innings but Rilee Rossouw held it together, scoring an unbeaten 65 off 64 balls. The next best score was opener Morne van Wyk's 24. Rowan Richards took 3 for 34 but couldn't prevent Knights from reaching 187 for 7 in 31.1 overs.

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Allround Smuts Leads Warriors To Victory

Franchise 1-Day Cup, 2011-12

ESPNcricinfo staff

November 5, 2011

An allrounder display from Jan Smuts propelled Warriors to a 31-run win over Knights at Buffalo Park in East London. Warriors chose to bat and Smuts led the way with a patient 98 to anchor his side. The innings was built the old fashioned way, with the top order scoring at less than five an over, before the lower order had a go at the end. Four of the top five batsmen had strike-rates under 80; the next three had strike-rates over 140. JP Kresuch, who made 46, shared the biggest partnership of the innings with Smuts, 85 for the fourth wicket. It was Smuts' departure, caught and bowled by Werner Coetsee in the 44th over, that led to surge in the scoring rate as Johan Botha, Craig Thyssen and Nicky Boje all had a go to take their side to 265 for 7.

Knights lost regular wickets from the start of their chase, and struggled to build momentum. They had slid to 119 for 7 before Coetsee and Charl Pietersen attempted to resurrect their challenge, but it was too little too late. Smut had Pietersen caught for 41 and though Coetsee remained unbeaten on 66, Knights were always behind the asking rate and could only manage 234 for 9. Smuts finished with figures of 3 for 48 to and was named Player of the Match.

The game between Dolphins and Cape Cobras was called off due to rain after just 10 overs were bowled.

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