Eastern Province cricket team was the former team that represented the Eastern Province in domestic first-class cricket in South Africa, alongside one-day matches. Eastern Province played first-class cricket from 1893–94 to 2004–05, when the team was merged with neighbouring team Border to form the entirely professional franchise the Warriors.
From 2004–05 the former provincial teams, such as Eastern Province, were allocated two CSA Provincial Competitions that they could participate in: the CSA 3-Day Cup and the CSA One-Day Cup. Although given first-class status, these competitions were to be only semi-professional and no longer represented the top level of domestic cricket in South Africa.[citation needed]
In 2020, domestic cricket in South Africa was restructured and the six former franchise teams were dropped. In its place was a return to the more traditional two-division league format, with a total of fifteen professional teams competing, and the semi-professional provincial cricket being subsumed (effectively becoming Division 2) . These teams are more structured around a province when compared to the previous broad franchises. The Eastern Province name could have been resurrected during this time, however Eastern Province Cricket decided to maintain the brand recognition from the franchise era, with the new team continuing to be called the Warriors.[1]
