The DP World Lions women’s cricket team has appointed Sandile Masengemi as their new head coach. The new head coach had stated that he wishes to take this team to greater heights in terms of skill development and match performances. He could potentially give the side the required encouragement to go the extra mile.
Masengemi’s coaching career commenced after he returned from England, after playing for a local team there. “That is where I also became an assistant coach, while playing, which is where my passion for coaching began. When I returned to South Africa, I became an assistant coach for a U17 provincial team. I later made my debut as a U19 assistant coach.”
Sandile had played a couple of matches for Gauteng, a local team in England. He later went on to become an assistant coach there as he had a growing passion for coaching. He later got his first official role as coach in the U17 provincial team of South Africa, and that must have been a great experience, as coaching youngsters always gives you different angles to focus on, and it also gives you an idea of what attributes of players should coaches focus on.
He later went on to make his debut as a U19 assistant coach, which helped him to shape his instincts as a coach, and it was a really great opportunity for him to learn. Being part of the coaching staff of the young national teams is very important as boards often assign highly talented coaching staff, as players need the right kind of training before being sent into the senior national side, which is an entirely different brand of cricket altogether.
Masengemi revealed that his first exposure to cricket came during his primary school years through the KFC Mini-Cricket programme. “I first played soccer in primary school because I was passionate about it. One day, while my friends and I were playing soccer, our principal brought in a cricket coach. From that day, we played cricket at school.”
The head coach added that, after playing the sport in primary school, he played in a team categorised under development cricket. “I proceeded to make my way to the provincial team and also played for the Strikers, which are now called the DP World Lions.”
The coach gave emphasis to the fact that he wasn’t a stranger to DP World Lions cricket, but he will have to adapt to coaching a new team and that he is trying to establish his own style in the field. He still firmly believes that working hard, having a positive mindset, and the honesty of how they perform as a team, will contribute to the growth of the team to a whole different level.
In the ongoing 2025-26 domestic season, Lions Women are seeded 2nd after 6 games, registering four wins in the 50-over competition. Meanwhile, in the 20-over games, they sit 2nd with 6 wins from 7 games, enjoying a spectacular run across competitions this home summer.
(Quotes sourced from Rosebank Killarney Gazette)
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