The Volts open their twenty20 campaign with a fixture against Auckland at Seddon Park in Hamilton tonight and play the defending champions, Northern Knights, at the same venue tomorrow.
Ten Doeschate has been a key part of the Otago side for the past two years but it has been his ability to close or hold an innings together that has made him such a wonderful player for the province.
The former Dutch international will have to stitch a team together that will be missing some big names this season.
Brendon McCullum is rarely available for the Volts but he is joined by Hamish Rutherford, Neil Wagner and Jimmy Neesham in the test team.
Rutherford and Wagner should return in time for the playoffs but the province will lose the services of Derek de Boorder, Jesse Ryder and Nathan McCullum late in the tournament.
The trio have been named in a New Zealand A side to play four games in Dubai this month and early next month. With all the personnel coming and going, it will fall to ten Doeschate to meld the team into a cohesive unit.
''The big challenge is going to be dealing with the guys leaving the squad,'' ten Doeschate said.
''It is a testament to the setup that these guys are in the Black Caps squad. But we are also losing a few guys to the New Zealand A squad later in the campaign so that is going to be a testing time as well.
''At the same time, it is a great challenge ... and an opportunity to show the depth that we have down there.''
Ten Doeschate captained Essex during the England summer but said he did not have a great deal of official experience.
''But I've always got involved ... and tried to influence and help with the decision-making, so I feel like I do have a lot of experience.''
While Otago will be missing some of the players who have helped the team build a reputation as a quality twenty20 side, ten Doeschate felt it would still be a competitive unit.
''Luckily with this group of guys we've had a lot of success, so one of the positives is there should be a lot of confidence and good memories to fall back on when things do get tough.''
Otago has opted for a second import this season, calling in another former Dutch international, Dirk Nannes.
Nannes and ten Doeschate played for the Netherlands at the 2009 ICC World Twenty20 tournament.
The pair also have another connection.
''Infamously, I was his third wicket in a hat trick at Chelmsford a few years ago,'' ten Doeschate said.
''Hopefully, he has forgotten about it.
''He brings something different [as a left-arm quick]. It is proven recipe for success in this format.
''We want to use him in a way which unsettles other teams, particularly in the middle order. We'll be looking to him to run in fast and restrict the hitting ability of other teams.''
Slow, rather than pace, bowling may actually be more effective. With Hamilton hosting the first nine twenty20 games, there will be a lot of cricket played on tired pitches.
Spinner Nick Beard and Nathan McCullum - while he is available - shape as key players in the attack, while Jacob Duffy and James McMillan are likely to take new ball.
The batting looks solid, with the likes of Aaron Redmond, Michael Bracewell, Ryder and ten Doeschate expected to contribute heavily.
The competition is wide open this summer with so many players away on national duty. But Northern shapes as a strong contender. It will get to play most of its cricket at its home venue at Seddon Park.
Super Smash
The teams
Otago: Ryan ten Doeschate (captain), Nick Beard, Michael Bracewell, Derek de Boorder, Jacob Duffy, Nathan McCullum, James McMillan, Dirk Nannes, Aaron Redmond, Jesse Ryder, Bradley Scott, Sam Wells.
Auckland: Rob Nicol (captain), Dean Bartlett, Michael Bates, Brad Cachopa, Carl Cachopa, Colin de Grandhomme, Donovan Grobbelaar, Anaru Kitchen, Colin Munro, Tarun Nethula, Matt Quinn, Jeet Raval.
Northern Districts: Daniel Flynn, Travis Birt, Dean Brownlie, Anton Devcich, Daryl Mitchell, Tim Seifert, Mitchell Santner, Daniel Vettori, Jonathan Boult, Graeme Aldridge, Scott Kuggeleijn, Ben Laughlin.
