Gauteng cricket team

Central Gauteng (formerly Transvaal) is the first-class cricket team of the southern parts of Gauteng province of South Africa. The team was called Transvaal from April 1890 to April 1997 (the area north of Johannesburg, including Pretoria being part of the Northerns, formerly Northern Transvaal). Under the main competition's various names – the Currie Cup, then the Castle Cup, now the SuperSport Series – Transvaal/Gauteng cricket team has been the most successful of the South African domestic sides, winning 25 times. The club's most glorious period was the 1980s when they were dubbed the "Mean Machine".[1][2]

For the purposes of the SuperSport Series, Gauteng merged with North West (formerly Western Transvaal) to form the Highveld Lions or, more simply, "the Lions" (from October 2004 to 2021). When the franchises were dissolved in 2021, the Lions name was applied to Central Gauteng alone.[3]

Current squad

Squad for 2026/27 Season[4]. Players in bold have played international cricket.

Name Nationality Birth date Batting style Bowling style Notes
Batters
Temba Bavuma  South Africa (1990-05-17) 17 May 1990 Right-handed Right-arm seam National Contract
Tiaan Brits  South Africa Left-handed
Zubayr Hamza  South Africa (1995-06-19) 19 June 1995 Right-handed Right-arm wrist spin Player of National Interest
Reeza Hendricks  South Africa (1989-08-14) 14 August 1989 Right-handed Right-arm orthodox spin
Richard Seletswane  South Africa (2005-01-21) 21 January 2005 Right-handed Right-arm orthodox spin
Mitchell van Buuren  South Africa (1998-01-21) 21 January 1998 Right-handed Right-arm wrist spin
Rassie van der Dussen  South Africa (1989-02-07) 7 February 1989 Right-handed Right-arm wrist spin
Wicket-keepers
Quinton de Kock  South Africa (1992-12-07) 7 December 1992 Left-handed National Contract
Connor Esterhuizen  South Africa (2001-05-31) 31 May 2001 Right-handed Player of National Interest
Dominic Hendricks  South Africa (1990-07-12) 12 July 1990 Left-handed Right-arm orthodox spin
Wandile Makwetu  South Africa (1999-01-07) 7 January 1999 Right-handed
Ryan Rickelton  South Africa (1996-07-11) 11 July 1996 Left-handed National Contract
All-rounders
Bjorn Fortuin  South Africa (1994-10-21) 21 October 1994 Right-handed Left-arm orthodox spin Player of National Interest
Wiaan Mulder  South Africa (1998-02-19) 19 February 1998 Right-handed Right-arm seam National Contract
Delano Potgieter  South Africa (1996-08-05) 5 August 1996 Left-handed Right-arm seam
Bowlers
Gerald Coetzee  South Africa (2000-10-02) 2 October 2000 Right-handed Right-arm seam Player of National Interest[5]
Kwena Maphaka  South Africa (2006-04-08) April 8, 2006 Left-handed Left-arm seam National Contract
Nqaba Peter  South Africa (2001-12-09) December 9, 2001 Right-handed Right-arm wrist spin Player of National Interest
Siya Plaatjie  South Africa (2001-02-18) February 18, 2001[6] Right-handed Right-arm seam
Kagiso Rabada  South Africa (1995-05-05) May 5, 1995 Left-handed Right-arm seam National Contract
Lutho Sipamla  South Africa (1998-05-12) May 12, 1998 Right-handed Right-arm seam Player of National Interest
Codi Yusuf  South Africa (1998-04-10) April 10, 1998 Right-handed Right-arm seam Player of National Interest

Honours

  • Currie Cup (25) - 1889–90, 1894–95, 1902–03, 1903–04, 1904–05, 1906–07, 1923–24, 1925–26, 1926–27, 1929–30, 1934–35, 1950–51, 1958–59, 1968–69, 1970–71, 1971–72, 1972–73, 1978–79, 1979–80, 1982–83, 1983–84, 1984–85, 1986–87, 1987–88, 1999–00; shared (4) - 1921–22, 1937–38, 1965–66, 1969–70
  • Standard Bank Cup (6) - 1981–82, 1982–83, 1984–85, 1992–93, 1997–98, 2003–04
  • South African Airways Provincial Three-Day Challenge (2) - 2006–07, 2012–13; 'shared (1) – 2014-15
  • South African Airways Provincial One-Day Challenge (1) - 2007–08
  • Gillette/Nissan Cup (9) - 1973–74, 1978–79, 1979–80, 1980–81, 1982–83, 1983–84, 1984–85, 1985–86, 1990–91

Former players

Among the notable players are: Clive Rice, Jimmy Cook, Sylvester Clarke, Graeme Pollock, Alvin Kallicharran, Roy Pienaar, Hugh Page, Richard Snell, Henry Fotheringham, Ray Jennings, Kevin McKenzie and Rohan Kanhai.[1]

Venues

Venues have included:

  • Old Wanderers, Johannesburg (1891–1946)
  • Berea Park, Pretoria (occasional venue Dec 1906 - Jan 1932; Northerns venue from 1937)
  • Willowmoore Park, Benoni (occasional venue Dec 1923 - Dec 1931; Northerns venue from 1948)
  • Ellis Park, Johannesburg (1946–1956)
  • New Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg (1956–present)
  • Vereeniging Brick and Tile Recreation Ground (one game in 1966)
  • New Wanderers No 1 Oval, Johannesburg (occasional venue Nov 1968 - Dec 1991)
  • Strathvaal Cricket Club A Ground, Stilfontein (occasional venue Dec 1963 - March 1976)
  • South African Defence Force Ground, Potchefstroom (one game in Dec 1972)
  • Lenasia Stadium, Johannesburg South (occasional venue Jan 1977 - Nov 2002)
  • George Lea Sports Club, Johannesburg (two games in 1983)
  • Dick Fourie Stadium, Vereeniging (two matches 1989–1991)
  • NF Oppenheimer Ground, Randjesfontein (three matches 1995–2004)

References

  1. ^ a b Houwing, Rob (6 June 2020). "Purring precision of Transvaal 'Mean Machine'". Sport24. Retrieved 10 February 2026.
  2. ^ Patel, Faizel (11 May 2026). "Cricket mourns Kevin McKenzie, 'Mean Machine' great dies at 77". The Citizen. Retrieved 11 May 2026.
  3. ^ https://www.algoafm.co.za/sport/cricket-south-africa-announces-new-domestic-structure
  4. ^ https://www.clubcricket.co.za/latestnews/sa-domestic-contracted-squads/
  5. ^ [1]
  6. ^ https://ipublish.cc/wp/csa/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2014/10/2018-Coca-Cola-Khaya-Majola-U19-Week-Brochure.pdf

Sources

  • South African Cricket Annual – various editions
  • Wisden Cricketers' Almanack – various editions
  • "Cricinfo"
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