Petersen hoping to step up after Dolphins move:
Durban – Following another strong domestic season with the VKB Knights, Keegan Petersen’s move to the Hollywoodbets Dolphins was carefully thought out as he hopes to take his career to the next level with a consistent spot in the national set-up the ultimate goal.
Petersen earned a call-up to the Proteas squad during their recent test series against England but didn’t earn a cap. He felt that he could have dealt with that call up better when he returned to franchise cricket.
“I think I might have put too much pressure on myself after I got the call up to the national squad,” Petersen said candidly. “I thought that I needed to justify the call up and that’s why the second half of the season didn’t go as well for me.
“With the season over it was time for me to move on and the Dolphins was a good fit for me as I have admired the kind of cricket that they played last season.”
The brand of cricket that the Dolphins have instilled in the franchise was appealing for Petersen along with a number of other factors that he feels will help him improve and push for another national call up.
“I watched a lot of Dolphins cricket last season and I think they are playing the cricket that the rest of the franchises are trying to,” he mentioned. “Their approach with the bat and their emphasis on spin with the ball is the way cricket is going.
“To also have a test venue as my home ground was important and the decision was purely a cricketing one.”
The move for the 26 year-old has also been influenced by the Dolphins’ reliance on spin bowling, one of the areas that Petersen wants to continue to improve on.
With the likes of Keshav Maharaj, Prenelan Subrayen and Senuran Muthusamy to contend with at training he has some of the best in the country to face regularly.
“I think that I am pretty good at playing spin bowling but it is always an area that you can improve so it’s going to be a good test for me.
“Another area that I want to improve on is consistency. I want to maintain good form for a long period because I know that another call-up to the Proteas squad isn’t going to come easily.”
Although Petersen’s national call-up came in the test squad he doesn’t want to pigeonhole himself.
“I’m not going to forget about one day cricket at all and I think it’s important to be consistent in both formats of the game.
“We saw how well the Dolphins batted in the One Day Cup and it’s encouraging to see how positively they went about their batting,” he added.
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The post Petersen hoping to step up after Dolphins move appeared first on Hollywoodbets Dolphins.
De Swardt ready for the franchise challenge:
Durban – One of the three out of province signings the Hollywoodbets Dolphins have made in this off-season is the exciting Ruan de Swardt from Northerns and the youngster is ready to make his mark on franchise cricket next season.
De Swardt was born and bred in Pretoria, schooled at the prestigious Affies before playing his semi-professional cricket for Northerns. The change in scenery is a daunting challenge for the 22 year-old however he is relishing it.
“I am very excited to start my life down in Durban even though it isn’t a place that I am too familiar with,” De Swardt said.
“I spent a bit of time down with the guys a few weeks ago and I really enjoyed the set up. It was an environment where you work really hard but when you are away from cricket it is a very relaxed place.
“They guys were very welcoming and that’s always a good sign of a happy set-up.”
De Swardt’s statistics at a semi-professional level are more than impressive with a batting average of 55 in first-class cricket and 88 in List-A cricket. Despite his obvious ability with the bat he wants to fill a bigger role in the team.
“I want to take on that all-rounder role in the side. For me I want to be the Ben Stokes of the South African team,” he emphasised.
“If I can pick up a yard of pace during the off-season then I will be in a better place to be a strong all-rounder and I am looking forward to working with Quinton Friend.
“Batting will be my main role and I would love to bat between four and six in the order and then bowl whenever needed.”
His move to the Dolphins was never one that he contemplated but having worked with Mduduzi Mbatha at Northerns the option of a move to the Kingdom of the Zulu then became available.
“I never ever thought that I would be moving to the Dolphins to be honest but after I got a call from Duzi (Mbatha), who was our coach at the U19 provincial week, he asked me if I would consider the move.
“Imraan (Khan) then got in touch with me and made me the offer. It was then up to the Dolphins and the Titans to work it out from there.
“When it was confirmed I made the trip down to Durban and was encouraged by the set-up there and that got me excited.
“I cannot wait to get going and I’m going to work as hard as I can when we get underway with our pre-season,” he added in anticipation.
Follow the Hollywoodbets Dolphins on social media
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DolphinsCricket/
Twitter: @DolphinsCricket
Instagram: @DolphinsCricket
The post De Swardt ready for the franchise challenge appeared first on Hollywoodbets Dolphins.
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