The Mpumalanga Rhinos start their CSA Division 2 Four-day Domestic Series with an away match against the KZN Tuskers today.

The match will be played at the Pietermaritzburg Oval.

The Rhinos finished fifth on the seven-team log in the 2021/22 season.

They won one, lost four and drew three matches. The lone victory was in the corresponding fixture last season. In mid March, the Rhinos hosted the Tuskers at Uplands College.

Captain Yasser Cook scored 169 in the first innings. Spinners Alex Kok and Kgandisa Molefe took 19 wickets between them, the other Tuskers’ dismissal being a run out by Jon Hinrichsen.

The Rhinos won by 169 runs.

No doubt the Tuskers will have a point to prove on their home ground.

The Rhinos have been hard at work since their CSA T20 Cup campaign ended on October 2 with one win, two losses and a bottom-of-pool-A finishing position.

But four-day cricket is far removed from limited overs cricket. The Rhinos have a talented, balanced team with a strong leader in Cook.

Patience, mental and physical endurance and the will to win will be the keys for the Mpumalanga lads.
How hungry the Rhinos are to make their fans proud, will be decided on the Pietermaritzburg Oval over the next four days.

Their first 2022/23 season home game will be against defending four-day champions Northern Cape Heat at Uplands College from November 3 to 6.

The Mpumalanga Rhinos’ fixtures
• October 20 – 22: Tuskers vs Rhinos (Pietermaritzburg Oval)
• November 3 – 6: Rhinos vs Northern Cape Heat (Uplands College)
• November 10 – 13: Limpopo Impalas vs Rhinos (Polokwane Cricket Club)
• February 9 – 12: Rhinos vs Garden Route Badgers (Uplands College)
• March 2 – 5: Eastern Storm vs Rhinos (Willowmoore Park)
• March 9 – 12: Rhinos vs Eastern Cape Iinyathi (Uplands College).