Nini, Van Rensburg celebrate invincible Dragons' promotion to Hollywoodbets Pro Series

Following an historic journey to the ICC Under-19 Women’s T20 World Cup final with the South Africa Under-19 Women earlier this year, the duo of Nthabiseng Nini and Diedre van Rensburg continued their outstanding start to the year by helping their Glencore North West Dragons side secure promotion to the Hollywoodbets Pro Series for the 2025/26 season.

After a two-year hiatus, the Dragons sealed their return to the Top 6 after finishing the season undefeated, winning all nine of their matches, including five victories at the recently concluded CSA Division 2 Women’s National Week in Bloemfontein.

Reflecting on the achievement, top-order batter Van Rensburg expressed her pride: “It means the world to us. We've been working so hard for the past couple of years. Our coaches and management have done everything for us. We're just ecstatic, so happy and so proud.”

Captain Nini highlighted the significance of their promotion: “Being back in the Pro Series really means a lot to us. We have worked so hard to be back. I mean, I wouldn't say it was an easy one. It was really tough to get back in the top division and we'd like to say thank you to our management for the hard work they have done for us.”

The Dragons’ dominance was led by outstanding individual performances, with Van Rensburg ending as the tournament’s top run-scorer while all-rounder Alyssa Erxleben emerged as the leading wicket-taker.

Van Rensburg amassed 440 runs at an incredible average of 62.85 in nine innings, including a top score of 165 as well as two fifties. She credited her success to maintaining composure and sticking to her strengths.

“The thing that worked well for me was just staying calm, looking for the singles, not trying to push anything hard, not trying to play anything out of my game, because my coaches and everyone there really encouraged me to play my game and just do what I do.

“The batters that I've been batting with have also really been supporting me and I've just been doing the things that I've been taught, so nothing changed,” van Rensburg continued.

With the ball, Erxleben was instrumental in the team’s success, claiming 22 wickets at an average of 8.95, including a best of 5/13. Nini praised her contributions: “Erxleben played a major role in the team. Being a senior player in the team, she really did her job well, and she did it for the team. I'd say hats off to her,” the skipper added.

For both Nini and Van Rensburg, this promotion marks a significant milestone in their careers after their success with the SA U19 team at the ICC U19 Women’s T20 World Cup. Nini believes the lessons from both campaigns will benefit them in Division One.

“Returning from the World Cup, I have grown a lot and now going to Division 1, I think I can take my learnings from the World Cup and the past two years in Division 2 to the next division and just perform with everyone’s backing,” she added.

Looking ahead to the Pro Series, Dragons are eager to establish themselves among the country’s best teams. Their primary focus is on maintaining consistency and making a lasting impact. Van Rensburg outlined her side’s ambitions.

“We want to win but I think for now it's just about getting back in, making a name for ourselves once again, staying there, staying consistent, winning a couple of matches and just getting our feet back into the sand and making sure that we're comfortable there and not get back to Division 2 again.”