Johannesburg – Morne van Wyk will lead the Dolphins against the side he served for 17 years when they take on the Knights in a One-Day Cup match in Kimberley on Friday.
Van Wyk made his first-class debut for Knights back in 1996/97, and admitted that it would be an emotional occasion taking the field against his former team-mates.
“To be honest I'm looking forward to it,” he said.
“It was different flying out to Bloem instead of flying home to Bloem, but I'm excited to see everybody and I'm expecting a tough game.”
Van Wyk said the move to Durban was an opportunity for him to grow as a person and as a cricket player.
“I was approached by them for a while, and I just realised that if I didn't move now, I might never move,” Van Wyk said.
“I believe there is a lot of talent in the Dolphins squad and that they have underperformed if you look at what they are capable of doing.
Van Wyk's side made the perfect start to their One-Day Cup campaign at the weekend with a bonus-point win over the Highveld Lions, but his former team have lost both of their games so far.
The 34-year-old's absence has left a hole in the Knights' batting order, with Gihahn Cloete and Rudi Second having to fill Van Wyk's shoes in their first full season for the franchise.
Neither has managed to cash in on promising starts to their innings so far, but coach Sarel Cilliers was happy to be patient.
“We haven't got too many options, so those are the guys for the job,” said Cilliers.
“Gihahn came into the side off a 100 (for Griqualand West), Rudi scored a 70 in pre-season, so it is just a question of application and really buckling down.
“But we understand that it takes time so there's no loss of faith in these guys.” – Sapa