Around The Wicket - March '23

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CEO Message

Message from Mr Heinrich Strydom

03 05 07 09

CSM Message Message from Mr Yashveer Singh

Hollywoodbets Dolphins 4 Day Champions

Hollywoodbets Dolphins crowned CSA 4-Day Series Champions for the second time in 3 years

Gary's Corner

A closer look at the content from Gary Kirtens's CoachED material: Adapting to various formats

Hollywoodbets Dolphins Ladies

Hollywoodbets Dolphins ladies are enjoying a strong season thus far with 3 matches remaining

11 13 15 16 17 19 21

Hollywoodbets Dolphins HP

HP & Academy squad continue to grow from strength to strength

KZNCU Castle Corner Bash

ShoFire Mobile & Maritzburg Engineering Lions win inaugural bash

KZNCU Castle Club T20 League Winners

A closer look at our T20 Club champs for the season

Dolphins School of Excellence

Creating the legends of tomorrow

Schools Cricket

Celebrating our age group teams and SA Schools selections

KFC Mini Cricket

Dear Hollywoodbets Dolphins family,

I trust that this message finds you well.

It is a privilege to write this message to you from the CEO’s office and as always I would like to remind you that this office door will always be open for feedback and ideas. I am a temporary custodian of this role and I want to leave it in a better space than I found it

It has been a hurricane of a start to 2023 and basically a continuation of the whirlwind that was 2022. Ever since the return of activities after the “you know what”, it has been our Hollywoodbets Dolphins mission, (as well as many others out there), to catch up on lost opportunities and embrace every moment A simple but very powerful message learnt to never take anything, any moment, any person, any opportunity, for granted, ever again.

My personal goal, learning from past experiences, is to consciously create and maintain a more balanced life A life that seeks to find the equilibrium between mindset, soulset, healthset and heartset I would like to challenge each of you to go and define what those four areas mean to you and your internal processes.

Due to all the on and off-field challenges over the past few years at a national level we started to ask questions about cricket’s relevance in the bigger picture, 2023 certainly brought us the answer From all the pros and cons of the SA20 tournament, the standout for me was the confirmation that cricket is still one of our nation’s favourite sporting codes and a significant option as a premium choice of entertainment.

We have to build on this momentum and ensure that this hunger for cricket is replicated in our domestic products. We have the players, we have the coaches, we have the support systems, we have the infrastructure and we most certainly have the fans.

The end of another season is fast approaching and there are some exciting times ahead with some of our players and staff involved at national level, both Hollywoodbets Dolphins men and ladies challenging for silverware, the launch of the Hollywoodbets Kingsmead 100 years celebration, CSA scorecard and pipeline activities such as club and school cricket.

These activities will bring incredible opportunities, let’s not take it for granted…

Yours in Cricket,

Heinrich Strydom Hollywoodbets Dolphins - CEO

‘’Leaders must transition from being responsible for the job, to being responsible for the people who are responsible for the job’’ - Simon Sinek.

The 2022/2023 season has come and is almost over, our 1st full season back since the COVID Pandemic and how we have relished the return!!! An action-packed season to date in the South African cricket calendar within the domestic space

The Cricket Services Department at the KZN Cricket Union has seen a revamp in the 2022/2023 season as we have had staff movements and changes across the board. The changes have seen new energy in the space

Activity at the Hollywoodbets Kingsmead Stadium begun in June 2022 with the hosting of Hong Kong in the Winter which coincided with our Winter Programs for the Hollywoodbets Dolphins Men, Women, High-Performance and Academy Squads, a welcomed addition to our calendar and confirming that we are able to be a world-class base for international teams

The season has since rolled into action with the kicking-off of all Club, School, HUBS and MiniCricket Programs across the board. As expected, challenges were faced up front and still do today, however, we have taken away from the learnings and look forward to creating more opportunities in the new season Successful programs in each of the departments have been held to date such as:

KFC Mini-Cricket Provincial and Regional Seminars.

KFC Mini-Cricket Provincial and Regional Festivals.

Capacity building workshops

T20 Finals Day at Hollywoodbets Kingsmead Stadium – Night Games.

National and Regional School Weeks.

KZN HUB Challenges

Internal HUB Tournaments.

The W100 Finals Day at Hollywoodbets Kingsmead Stadium – Night Games Club League Fixtures.

Coaches Forums, Courses and Acceleration Programs.

#TurnItUp – ICC Womens T20 World Cup Road Show.

Dolphins School of Excellence Program

To name a few. As we get to the end of an extraordinary season of learning, growing and ensuring that we plot the way forward for the next season, I look forward to engaging with more stakeholders within the KZN Cricket Space as well as our National ecosystem. We encourage an open door policy at KZN Cricket and look forward to receiving feedback, comments and ideas on how we may leave our space in a better space than when we found it

Yours in Cricket, Yashveer Singh

KZNCU - Cricket Services Manager

After a dominant run of four wins in a row, the Hollywoodbets Dolphins claimed the CSA 4-Day Domestic Series title at the conclusion of their final match against the Lions at the JB Marks Oval on Wednesday.

Since the restart of the red ball competition at the conclusion of the SA20, the Hollywoodbets Dolphins went on a run of four wins on the bounce to catapult them to the top of the standings going into the final round of matches

The Hollywoodbets Dolphins produced four dominant performances before they lost by three wickets against the Lions in their final match of the campaign, but President of the KZN Cricket Union Yunus Bobat heaped praise on the squad and the coaching unit.

"This Dolphins team has shown incredible character to turn their four-day season around and we are incredibly proud of their efforts," Bobat said. "To Imraan Khan, his coaching staff, and the team, the KZN Cricket Union wants to congratulate you on your achievements and to win the 4-Day Series twice in three seasons is a fantastic achievement."

Despite a final round loss, CEO of KZN Cricket Heinrich Strydom was quick to highlight the significance of their competition triumph. “The four-day series is seen as the ultimate competition in our domestic circuit and having won it twice now in the last three years is testament to the quality of the professional coaching team and talented bunch of players that we have at our disposal," Strydom said "Every single member of this group had to step up at some stage during this campaign and it once again highlights our strong team culture. It's a proud day for KZN as a whole and we certainly share this special moment with all our stakeholders and fans. It has been another successful season for the Dolphins, and we will certainly take a moment to celebrate it ”

Chairman of selectors Enver Mall described how happy he was with the way the selection committee stuck to their guns."The Dolphins selection panel is really pleased with our ending the season by winning the CSA 4-Day Series," Mall said. "We strongly shared and supported Coach Imraan Khan's vision and plans in the selection of our teams throughout the season and this has certainly paid off brilliantly. Well done to the entire squad of players and the coaching staff. You have made the entire KZN Dolphins cricketing family, including our supporters, very proud and happy."

GARY'S

Adaptingtovariou

With school and professional players facing an increased schedule of cricket throughout the year, it is pivotal that they can adjust to different conditions One of these variances is the change in formats. Whether it is a 50 over game, a T20 or a full day match players can be faced with all these formats within the small space of a week. The strategies in these games can be vastly different, so what is the best way to overcome these challenges?

Fundamentals

The basics of the game are as always, the most crucial to success in any format. The principles of batting, including watching the ball, hitting with as fuller face of the bat as possible, weight transfer in the shot and balance throughout the movement, are technical fundamentals which must be adhered to in all formats Likewise with bowling – Alignment towards the intended direction, stability in the action and a controlled force generation provides a bowler with a repeatable and consistent delivery which he needs confidence and a clear committed mind to execute. Many fielding techniques remain the same and are just accelerated depending on the pace of the game. These include speed to the ball, clean pickups, accurate throws and taking catches As a coach or player, it is tempting to be distracted by fads in the game and to not spend as much time on the basics, but as famous coach Chuck Noll said, “Champions are those who do ordinary things better than everyone else”

Processes

In order to win a Test match, one team has to gain all 20 wickets at a lower cost than that of an opposition within a 5-day period. Hence the objective of the game determines the processes which need to be done to be successful. Limited over cricket provides the strategy which values runs in a specific number of overs to determine a winner The important processes thus differ in the various formats, however with these variances there are also some striking similarities important to all. When practicing for a specific format a player or coach should emphasise a game plan that will give them the best chance of success in the middle in various situations

CORNER usformats

Similarities

A common chestnut of cricket terminology is “keeping wickets in hand”, this along with many strategies falls on a sliding continuum of importance at different stages of a match to accomplish the team’s objective of winning the game. Take for example a T20 game when a team requires 50 runs off 10 overs with 7 wickets in hand. It is then crucial that the bowling team restrict the run rate through the fall of wickets rather than looking to contain, they will thus bowl more aggressive lines and lengths with field placings to match to reach the goal –perhaps borrowing some blueprints from Full day cricket.

Differences

T20 cricket has certainly unlocked players capabilities and skills in terms of innovation and execution which is filtering through the longer limited over formats and test match cricket. This is producing cricketers who can break the mould of yesteryears mind-sets which have its positives and negatives Many more athletic players are now taking the field with acrobat like fielding standards, variations of deliveries and a full array of shot making which are now commonplace for even Test cricket. However, many players consider the Test arena to be the true reflection of a player. Perhaps it’s the endurance, the strategy, the courage and the character of a man that is on show which appeals to the diehard cricket traditionalists over the flashy skills, adaptability and pace of the short forms, but they all have their place on the cricket landscape and thus should be embraced for what they bring to the game by both players and coaches.

The Hollywoodbets Ladies have done the hard yards during the off season. The ladies have come to a point where they have started to trust in the process and believe in each other. They are big on putting the team first and that is exactly what the players have done to date. There were a few challenges arising with injuries in the camp, but the team always found a way to field an 11 that could compete.

The team is currently second on the log, 4 points behind Six Gun Grill Western Province with both teams having 3 games remaining The Hollywoodbets Dolphins Ladies have played 7 matches- won 4, lost 0 and 3 no results The players are looking to end the season on a high and leave everything on the park.

The following matches remain for the season:

18 March vs Fidelity Titans ladies’ - Hollywoodbets Kingsmead Stadium, Durban

26 March vs Six Gun Grill WP - Six Gun Grill Newlands, Cape Town

2 April vs Six Gun Grill Garden Route Badgers - Recreation Ground, Oudtshoorn

National Representatives

ICC Women's U19 World Cup

Ayanda Hlubi and Seshnie Naidu. Angelique Taai (Assistant Coach)

ICC Women's T20 World Cup

Nonkululeko Mlaba, Chloé Tryon and Shabnim Ismail

Nonkululeko Mlaba at the ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2023

Current T20 World Ranking: 2

H I G H P E R F O R M A N C E & A C A D E M Y

An exciting start to the 2022/2023 season, together with the Hollywoodbets Dolphins Head Coach, Imraan Khan, we decided to combine squads for the 2022/2023 pre-season program.

This was a great opportunity for the younger guys to work with the senior coaches and support staff It was also an opportunity for the players to understand the expectations and standards required to play at the next level. During the preseason the HP players were fortunate enough to have had the opportunity to play against the Hong Kong National team in three T20 matches, played at Hollywoodbets Kingsmead Stadium. It was a great experience playing against an international team There were good performances put in by all the HP players, with a special mention to Chad Laycock, who produced some exciting knocks with the bat.

We are proud of our players who made the most of their call up to the Hollywoodbets Dolphins team. Odirile Modimokoane introduced himself in fine fashion during the CSA 4 Day Cup and One Day Cup competitions Brad Porteous announced his arrival with a maiden List-A century during a CSA One Day Cup match against Western Province.

There was a new intake for the academy in January and everyone enjoyed a warm welcome at the capping ceremony and kit handover. The start of 2023 also saw a slight change in the structures, with the Hollywoodbets Dolphins Academy joining the HP program, in a bid to upgrade the program.

The team enjoyed a successful team building camp at Michaelhouse where the players worked hard in the middle but also had fun as a team off the field.

Our program continues to take shape and offer great value to the future Hollywoodbets Dolphins.

K Z N C U C A S T L E C O R N E R B A S H

The inaugural KZNCU Castle Corner Bash (CCB) saw six teams face off in a hard-hitting, thrilling and competitive T20 tournament with a number of the Hollywoodbets Dolphins stars playing alongside the top performing Hollywoodbets Dolphins Academy players, club and school cricketers. All players were entered into a draft system where each team’s head coach and owners were given the opportunity to build their own unique squad The CCB was initiated to kick start the 2022/2023 club cricket season in KZN.

The tournament was hosted over two weekends in September 2022 at the beautiful Hollywoodbets Kingsmead Stadium, Kingsmead Oval and Crusaders Cricket Club.

All six teams, ShoFire Mobile & Maritzburg Engineering Lions, Hollywoodbets Hotshots, Capital 23 Crushers, ETA Shields, Gap Debt Solutions Sixers and the Aucor Avengers, produced quality entertainment throughout the tournament, especially on the final day. Hollywoodbets Kingsmead Stadium had an electric vibe with exhilarating cricket on the go as well as The Howzat Market on the banks and various DJ's on the SAB Deck

ShoFire Mobile & Maritzburg Engineering Lions were the inaugural champions, getting the better of the Hollywoodbets Hotshots in the final.

Top Performers

Youth Player of the Tournament

Ross Coetzee, Capital 23 Crushers (88 runs, 131 strike rate)

Ambassador of the Tournament

Prenelan Subrayen, ETA Shields

Club Player of the Tournament

Jordan Grobbelaar, Gap Debt Solutions Sixers (183 runs, 105 strike rate)

Bowler of the Tournament

Andile Simelane, ShoFire Mobile and Maritzburg Engineering Lions (12 wickets, 6,6 economy)

Batter of the Tournament

Eathan Bosch, Hollywoodbets Hotshots (207 runs, 148 strike rate)

Player of the Tournament

Marques Ackermann

Premier Men's League

Simplex RHCC vs Hollywoodbets Crusaders

Simplex RHCC 171/4 (20) T Trenowerth 106 (68)

H Modimokoane 4-0-23-2

Hollywoodbets Crusaders 174/4 (19.1) C Laycock 85 (55)

B Porteous 4--0-27-2

Hollywoodbets Crusaders won by 6 wickets

Promotion Men's League Women's League

Harlequins vs East Coast

Harlequins 127/6 (18.5) M Parks 32 (18)

N Soni 4-0-14-2

East Coast 68/5 (8.3) M Mararane 22 (17)

D Agnew 2-0-11-2

East Coast won by 5 wickets (Run-rate)

Lindelani vs Chatsworth Sporting Topham

Lindelani 133/5 (18.5) N Shangase 38* (24)

J DeFigeuiredo 3.5-0-18-2

Chatsworth Sporting Topham DNB

No Result - Shared Trophy

There have been many activities that took place over the last few months leading up to the close of the 2022 year. Among those were the main and final school trials. These trials took place in the second half of the year where a total of 13 teams were selected to represent KZN at the Primary and High School Cricket weeks. 6 Primary School and 7 High School teams, which included the 4 CSA National week teams.

The Annual Schools Capping ceremony saw the first primary schools capping taking place at Hollywoodbets Kingsmead, Krish Mackerdhuj Presidential suite on 24 November and the High Schools on 25 November 2022. Both days were exceptionally well attended.

The National week team captains were all honoured with Blazers which was a first of its kind at the KZN Schools Capping Ceremony.

Regional & National Week Results:

National Week Teams:

U16 Boys – Rained out

U16 Girls – 1st

U19 Boys – 6th

U19 Girls – Tied 1st

SA Schools

Romashen Pillay

SA Colts: Bonga Shezi

SA Schools (Girls)

Shanel Madurai & Luyanda Nzuza

SA Fillies

Esihle Kawu

Regional Week Teams:

U11 Boys Blue Team – 1st

U11 Boys Red Team – 2nd

U13 Boys Green Team - 2nd

U13 Boys White Team - 1st

U13 Girls A - 3rd

U13 Girls B - 5th

U15 Boys Duskys – 1st

U15 Boys Orcas – 4th

U17 Boys – 1st

Our Girls U16 and U19 teams showed great resilience and tenacity at their respective National Weeks. The U19 girls bounced back after an opening loss to finish tied-1st after inclement weather washed out the final match of the Week

The U16 girls had a great tournament, rising to the occasion and dominating their age group, finishing as the only unbeaten team at their Week.

The U16 boys Week saw hardly any cricket played, with 3 of their 4 days washed out

We are proud of our KZN representatives who were selected in various SA Schools teams. Romashen Pillay showed great skill throughout the Khaya Majola Week and was named as the Player of the Tournament as well as in the SA Schools team Bonga Shezi was selected for SA Colts Within the girls space, Shanel Madurai and Luyanda Nzuza were selected for SA Schools (Girls) and Esihle Kawu for SA Fillies.

National & Regional Week Selections:

KZN Boys U11

Sbonga Ngubo

Siyabonga Duze

KZN Boys U15

Sibani Dube

Vuyo Mokoena

Asanda Mthembu

KZN Girls U19

Nobuhle Busane

Ayanda Hlubi

Esihle Kawu

Andiswa Majola

Noluyolo Mkhaliphi

Nomfundo Mthombeni

Seshnie Naidu

Samkelisiwe Ndlovu

Sisanda Ngubane

Luyanda Nzuza

Sbahle Khanyile

Wandile Xulu

KZN Boys U13

Mpendulo Ngubo

KZN Girls U16

Andiswa Ndlovu

Entle Mkhaliphi

Nonkululeko Makhubu

Olwethu Gasa

Simtho Mngadi

Nokulunga Shangase

KZN Girls U13

Anelisa Mhlongo

Akhona Gumede

Londeka Ntombela

Mandisa Khanyile

Amanda Shandu

Sphiwesihle Mhlongo

Noxolo Biyela

KZN Boys U17

Melusi Hadebe

INK HUB - Hub Challenge Champions!

It has been 9 months into this KFC Mini Cricket space and it has been challenging, but successful. We have completed numerous activations, with many more planned for the season.

We have 433, actively playing, mini cricket schools in KZN. So far, we have played over 5000 mini cricket games from June 2022.

KZN Coastal is divided into 5 Municipal Districts, who we service and support in order to develop our beautiful game. Below is the list of playing centres as well as the number of schools that are actively involved.

4 Seminars | 18 Festivals | 10 Coaching Clinics

National Seminar at Sun City. KZN Delegates:

Nirupa Ramchader (Port Shepstone), Sinazo Faye (DCC),

Romy Naidoo (Trenance Primary), Celest Tait (Durban North College),

Trevor Kitzmann (Felixton College),

Siyabonga Mtshali (King Cetshwayo Hub)

Kit hand-over:

Westville Senior Primary School hosted a coaching clinic on 25 February 2023 with more than 100 kids attending on the day.

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