Dolphins coach Lance Klusener was fired on Monday, paying the price for his team's wildly inconsistent season and a dressing room that appeared to be out of control.
The former Proteas all-rounder, who guided the Dolphins to the 2013-2014 season Ram Slam T20 title, presided over a season in which his team lost the final of the T20 contest; were hopeless in the one-day competition and are placed an unimpressive fourth in the Sunfoil Series.
An off-the-field incident in which Robbie Frylinck allegedly punched teammate Aya Myoli hinted at a dressing room not entirely united.
That, combined with poor performance , seemingly cost Klusener his job. The final straw was probably when the Dolphins were bowled out for 111 by the Warriors at home in the one-day competition.
Klusener confirmed his sacking on Monday when he said: "It's correct that my contract has been terminated and it's also correct that it was terminated without any reasons being given."
But franchise CE Pete de Wet was not forthcoming.
"Lance hasn't been fired and there's a press statement coming out very soon clarifying that," he said.
But when the statement was eventually released, it contradicted De Wet's denial.
"The board felt that the time was right to refresh the team dynamic to enable this talented group of players to reach the next level, and agreed that a new coach was an integral part of that process," it said.
"Lance has been a loyal servant of KwaZulu-Natal cricket and the Sunfoil Dolphins and his passion and loyalty to the team is unquestionable. That has made the decision taken by the board all the more difficult."
Yashin Ebrahim and Roger Telemachus will coach the team until a permanent replacement is found.
