Change of formats presents Proteas chance of redemption
|Published
The first One-Day International between SA and England takes place in Cape Town on Tuesday. Photo: @OfficialCSA on twitter The first One-Day International between SA and England takes place in Cape Town on Tuesday. Photo: @OfficialCSA on twitter
JOHANNESBURG – The change of format could not come at a better time for South Africa, as they prepare to host England in their three-match One-Day International series starting in Cape Town on Tuesday.
SA lost the four-Test series 3-1, which ended on January 27 in Johannesburg as England romped to a 191-run victory. There was, however, renewed hope for SA cricket after the first Test in Centurion which the hosts won by 107 runs on December 29. The victory was the first match in charge for SA coach Mark Boucher, and his former captain Graeme Smith recently appointed as Cricket SA (CSA) acting Director of Cricket.
It seemed all was well with the world, but the gulf in class between the two sides would be exposed over the course of the Test series. This was despite SA wicketkeeper batsman Quinton de Kock topping the run-scoring charts with 380 runs and fast bowler Anrich Nortje taking the most wickets with his 18 scalps.
Despite De Kock scoring the most runs, his top score of 95 batting down the order was not enough as three England batsmen scored centuries through Dom Sibley (133), Ben Stokes (120) and Ollie Pope (135).
During the course of the series, it was also announced that Faf du Plessis would hand over the ODI captaincy to De Kock. There were also rumours that Du Plessis, 35, could be forced into retirement after his continued run of poor form in the longest format.
Now De Kock will be going into the ODI series as skipper, wicketkeeper and opening batsman - a tall order for any player - but a responsibility the 27-year-old welcomed.
“Now with the captaincy, it adds a bit more responsibility to me, which I enjoy. I think I am going to hang on with the keeping and the batting for a while,” said De Kock.
Though SA will be ready to put the Test series behind them, they also come off their worst-ever Cricket World Cup performance in 2019. And coming up against the world champions will only compound matters.
Leading the SA attack will be Lungi Ngidi who has spent the last three weeks at a CSA strength and conditioning camp. The 1.93m-tall fast bowler - with 22 ODI caps to his name - claims to have lost as much as five kilograms in that time and will be ready to spearhead South Africa’s bowling lineup.
The 23-year-old picked up a hamstring injury during the first week of December during the Mzansi Super League, and with his return much of the responsibility rests on his broad shoulders. That’s in no small way due to the absence of Kagiso Rabada who is being rested and the experienced veteran Dale Steyn not chosen for the series.
The Mother City is showing off today 😍. The first @Momentum_za ODI is this Tuesday! If you’re not in town, catch it live on @SuperSportTV2, @SABC3& @Radio2000ZA at 13:00. Tickets are selling fast, book your seats at https://t.co/vfUj3KvAY6. pic.twitter.com/hc2fdGyCPd
— Cricket South Africa (@OfficialCSA) February 2, 2020
While it may come as a relief for some of the SA players to swap the whites for the colourful ODI strips, the odds will once more be stacked against them - and putting in a strong performance against the best team in the world will be quite unexpected. With that knowledge, the underdog Proteas may just be capable of springing a surprise - or is that just wishful thinking?