Ahead of their third match of the CSA 4-Day Domestic Series, the AET Tuskers have included young St Charles quick Thabiso Ndlela in their squad for their clash with the North West Dragons in Potchefstroom.
Having made his way through the Sweetwaters Hub to St Charles College and into the Tuskers Colts side, Ndela impressed in their recent clash with the Dolphins Colts taking five wickets on debut which led to a promotion to the senior side.
To have a youngster coming through the ranks is always exciting and for coach Ahmed Amla he’s eager to see his development.
“Thabiso is still very young but we’re very excited to see how he fits in at the top level,” Amla said.
“He’s shown a lot of promise during the Colts game and to give him some experience in the 4-Day cricket environment at such a young age is a brave call, but we feel that he has the ability to make that step up eventually.”
The Tuskers have begun their red ball season with a loss and a draw in their opening two matches of the competition, and they will be hoping to turn that fortune around on their first trip out the province in the tournament.
They lost their opener to the Hollywoodbets Dolphins and then drew their second match against Western Province at home in a rain-affected clash.
For Amla, making sure they follow their processes is crucial heading into what could prove to be another tough encounter.
“We’ve worked really hard on improving the basics of our game over the last two weeks.” Amla added.
“The team knows that we have a lot of work to keep improving, and I’ve been happy that our attitude has shifted towards working harder on fitness and skills disciplines.
“We’ll have another serious test this week on the Highveld against a strong North West side but we know that if we can put together big partnerships with the bat and control the lengths we bowl, in the field we’ll have a good opportunity to create some pressure on the opposition.”
AET Tuskers v North West Dragons Squad
Pite van Biljon, Alindile Mhletywa, Ben Compton, Thando Ntini, Jonty Rapulana, Cameron Shekelton, Tian Koekemoer, Michael Erlank, Malcolm Nofal, Thamsanqa Kumalo, Keith Dudgeon, Dilivio Rigard, Thabiso Ndlela.
PHOTO: GALLO IMAGES/ASHLEY VLOTMAN
