How to balance the Proteas' ODI side Print E-mail
Category: Features
Written by Luke Tagg   
Thursday, 25 February 2010 00:18
Fourteen of the 16 players in South Africa's ODI squad in India have played in the two games so far, yet the Proteas have lost the series 2-0. Clearly something's not right.

At first glance, it's the bowling that is a problem for South Africa. At second glance too.

When your opposition scores 298/9 and 401/3 to go with a first-ever, world record double century in ODI cricket, you have to at least consider the possibility that your bowling attack needs the odd tweak.

In both games South Africa's batsmen were under severe pressure to chase huge scores - inevitably they were going to collapse under the sheer weight of the problem.

I'm going to be fair for a brief moment and admit that not even Jesus himself could have taken Sachin's wicket in the second ODI, let alone Ol' One-Eye Langeveldt and his merry bunch of try-hards.

Still.

Jacques Kallis averages 24.33 with the ball in the series so far, but the next best average is Wayne Parnell's 54.66. Both of them have three wickets, but both have been tragically expensive.

Dale Steyn has taken 0/135 in his 20 overs and Langeveldt has 1/118. Not exactly the sort of stats that win matches, series and all the good stuff.

Coach Corrie de Villiers has said he is desperately trying to find the right combinations, which is understandable enough. Problem is, he's moving in the wrong direction.

He'll probably want to give either Morne Morkel or Lonwabo Tsotsobe or both a go in the third ODI, which will probably only compound the selection troubles.

I'll say it here, I'll say it now: JP Duminy is the problem. He's throwing the balance of the side out with his inability to perform with either bat or ball.

It's obvious to everyone that he has a major technique problem when playing forward defensive shots. When you keep getting out lbw to slow bowlers, missing the ball by a mile, you have to go home and get it sorted out.

It's not an indictment on the guy - he's a class player in any format and has no need to prove that to anyone. But he's all messed up right now and is not helping his cause nor that of the team.

One thing this tour to India has made abundantly clear is that you need more than one spinner. India go to the other extreme, playing only two seamers, but South Africa effectively only has one when Duminy is not firing: Johan Botha or Roelof van der Merwe.

Both those guys were the absolute darlings of South African cricket a year ago in the short forms of the game, yet now we're having to trade one for the other to help Duminy get his groove back.

Admittedly Botha and van der Merwe were worked out by the other sides in the last World Twenty20 and weren't nearly as effective as they had been in the run-up to the event, but they are both class players and both are needed.

Each has had a go in the ODI series so far. Botha took 0/40 in 6 and Roelie bagged 1/62 in 10, which is hardly inspiring stuff. But they were at their best when bowling in tandem and I believe they need to be reunited as one for the third ODI.

As far as the batting goes, the aforementioned pressure of chasing big scores doesn't excuse some of the rubbish batting dished up by the top order.

AB de Villiers did well in scoring an unbeaten century in the second ODI, but he wasn't under any sort of pressure. The chase was never on. I don't mind him scoring a hundred, but I'd rather he did it to win a match.

Jacques Kallis made a good 89 in the first ODI but got all silly in the second and threw it away. Hashim Amla did well with his 34 off 22 in Gwalior, but the next best batsmen has been Wayne Parnell, batting at No. 9.

The dominating presence of Graeme Smith has been sorely missed at the top of the order. It's been up to Herschelle Gibbs and Loots Bosman to fill his role, yet neither have been able to do so.

Duminy and Albie Morkel were both a disaster and Alviro Petersen hasn't exactly shone in the middle order.

Although I'm sure either Morne Morkel or Tsotsobe will get a run in Ahmedabad on Saturday, I think the balance of the side can be bettered with the following combination of the current squad:

1. Hashim Amla
2. Loots Bosman
3. Jacques Kallis
4. AB de Villiers
5. Alviro Petersen
6. Albie Morkel
7. Mark Boucher
8. Roelof van der Merwe
9. Johan Botha
10. Wayne Parnell
11. Dale Steyn

You may want to trade Steyn for Langeveldt, but then you lose a batting option. Bosman deserves another shot over Gibbs.

That side bats all the way down to 11 (Steyn scored the third-most runs for South Africa in the first ODI), with a good mix of stick-in-the-muds, aggressors and outright sloggers.

There are four seamers and two spinners, which I far prefer to 5-1. If one spinner gets punished there's still another who can have a bash.

There are also nice batting combinations:

Bosman is there to clear the inner ring in the first 15, while Amla should be plodding along at his career strike rate of 82.

Kallis and de Villiers can both turn it on or off depending on the situation, while Petersen is the straight man to Morkel's fool.

Bouch is there to shepherd the hard-hitting tail through the valley of death.

Of course, it's all pointless if they can't find a way to a) not play horizontal bat shots to low-bouncing, skiddy straight balls; or b) take wickets.

Ultimately there's only one suggestion I hope they take heed of: win the damn toss, Jakes.

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