Top 10 players from Cape Cobras

The Cape Cobras, better known simply as the Cobras, are one of the most prominent and successful domestic teams in South Africa. The franchise was created in 2005 and combined the areas in Boland and Western Province in South Africa.

Throughout that time, the Cobras have proven to be one of the toughest teams to beat in the South African domestic scene, and much of that has to do with the excellent cricketers who have represented the franchise so far.

Currently, the Cobras squad is blessed with some of the leading players in the South African national team and the domestic circuit, which is why they continue to be a force in first-class cricket in the country. Here is a look at their top 10 players at the moment

10 Beuran Hendricks

The left arm fast bowler has been an integral part of the Cape Cobras' set up for the past 4 seasons and his fast swing bowling has proven to be quite troublesome for plenty of batsmen in the South African domestic circuit.

Having played for the Western Province since 2010, Beuran Hendricks burst on to the scene for the Cape Cobras in the 2012-13 season, when he snared 35 wickets in the season and recorded an excellent average of 17.74.

Right from that season, Hendricks has been a regular for the Cape Cobras across the three formats of the game and has also played 7 T20Is for the national team.

#9 Dane Piedt

Dane Piedt

For a long time, South Africa did not have a right arm off-spinner who had the variety that could be comparable with the modern off-spinners in the world. However, that seemed to change following the emergence of Dane Piedt of the Cape Cobras, who has become an integral part of the team over the past few years.

Piedt can bowl the doosra, the topspin delivery and the carrom ball, that has made him one of the most dangerous bowlers in the South African domestic. He is particularly dangerous on wearing pitches and has often proven to be unplayable in the 4th innings. He plays for the Cape Cobras across the three formats of the game and has been a consistent wicket-taker for them.

#8 Rory Kleinveldt

Rory Kleinveldt

The fast bowler who had been regarded as a future South African star might not have been able to make it in international cricket but he remains one of the key members of the Cape Cobras squad and is expected to be one of their main bowlers in the current season as well.

Kleinveldt has been with the Cobras since 2005 and has been one of the leading bowlers in the South African domestic scene for close to a decade. In a first-class career spanning 143 games, he has picked up 436 wickets at an average of 27.99 and in 153 List A games, he has recorded a tally of 172 wickets.

Overall, he is one of the best bowlers in the first-class circuit and has also proven to be a big hit for Northants in the English County Championships.

#7 Brendan Young

Brendan Young is one of the youngest members of the Cape Cobras outfit at 25 years of age and joined the squad before the start of the 2012-13 domestic season.

Young had created a bit of a reputation as an intimidating bowler, who could bowl genuinely fast, in school level cricket and before long his exploits started being noticed.

However, after struggling to perform to the best of his abilities for Natal, Young moved to Western Province and then to the Cobras. He has picked up 53 wickets in 25 games in first-class cricket and 26 wickets in List A cricket in 25 games.

However, one can be quite certain that in the years to come, he will be one of the top players in the Cobras side.

#6 Andrew Puttick

Left-handed opening batsman Andrew Puttick has been one of the most important players in the Cape Cobras side for a considerable period of time and continues to be a rock at the top of the order for the side in all formats of the game in domestic cricket.

Occasionally, Puttick keeps wickets as well and that makes him a high-quality utility player for the side, particularly in limited overs cricket.

Puttick is a veteran of the first-class game in South Africa and has turned out in 170 games so far. He averages a healthy 40.11 and has scored 26 centuries. In List A cricket, he has scored 12 centuries and 30 half-centuries in 171 games.

Puttick is a regular in the Cape Cobras' T20 side as well and is well known for having scored 104 in the T20 Champions League in India back in 2009.

#5 JP Duminy

JP Duminy

Jean-Paul Duminy is one of the best cricketers to have come from the Westerm Cape region in the last decade or so and naturally, he plays for his home first-class side, the Cape Cobras.

His first-class career started way back in the 2011-02 season and since then he has been a superb player for the Western Province team and then the Cape Cobras.

Duminy has appeared in 108 first-class games in his career and scored 6774 runs at an excellent average of 46.08 and considering the fact that he has retired from Test cricket, it can be assumed that he would be able to devote far more time to the Cobras team from the 2017-18 season onwards.

He has been equally good in List A games and has scored 6464 runs at an averaged of 38.24 in 240 games.

#4 Wayne Parnell

Wayne Parnell

The South African all-rounder started off his career in domestic cricket with Eastern Province and then moved to the Warriors, however, from the 2015-16 onwards he has been with the Cape Cobras.

Since joining them his international career has been revived somewhat as well due to the performance he has delivered in domestic cricket.

Although Parnell has been with the Cobras for no more than 2 years, he has already established himself as one of their key players and has delivered excellent performances for the team in domestic competitions.

Parnell has been particularly effective in the limited overs formats and in the Ram Slam, he became a revelation when opening the innings for the Cobras. It is expected that he will be one of the team's key players this season as well.

#3 Vernon Philander

Vernon Philander

The right arm seam bowler has been one of South Africa's top performers ever since he made his Test debut back in 2011 and prior to that, he had been one of the top bowlers in the nation's domestic circuit with the Cape Cobras.

Philander's relentless accuracy and seam movement, coupled with decent pace have made him one of the world's top bowlers and throughout his career with the Cobras, he has been one of the best bowlers.

He has played 146 first-class games in his career and during the course of those games, Philander has picked up 514 wickets at an average of 21.87.

Needless to say, he is a seam bowler of rare quality and whenever he is available to play for the Cobras, he is going to be one of their most important wicket-takers.

#2 Hashim Amla

Hashim Amla

One of South Africa's finest ever batsmen across the three formats of the game started off his domestic career with the KwaZulu Natal Dolphins back in 1999 but in 2013 he moved to the Cape Cobras. Since then he has naturally established himself as one of the side's best batsmen.

Amla has been a giant of the South African domestic game for a long time, and his record speaks for itself. In first-class cricket, he has played 215 games so far and made 16508 runs at an outstanding average of 50.48.

On the other hand, he has scored 50 centuries and as many as 78 half-centuries. Needless to say, he won't always be available for the Cape Cobras but when he is then they would have one of the best batsmen in the world to call upon.

#1 Dale Steyn

Dale Steyn

Perhaps the best fast bowler of the modern era and definitely one of the greatest to havr ever played the game, Steyn moved to the Cape Cobras from the Titans back in 2010.

When Dale Steyn signed up for the Cobras in 2010, he was at his peak as a fast bowler and over the years, he has been one of the team's top performers. Although injuries might have slowed him down a bit in the last couple of years, he still remains the Cobras' best player and a bowler who can win a match in a couple of sessions.

In a glittering first-class career spanning 128 games, Steyn has taken a staggering 576 wickets at an average of 23.28 and strike rate of only 43.4 In 166 List A games, he has picked up 259 wickets at an average of 24.98.

He has made it back to the Cobras side this year and would definitely like to ensure that the team wins the domestic championship.