When you start any contest in life your aim is to win it, and the Proteas did just that in the recent ODI Series against Sri Lanka securing it 3-2. Mission accomplished then? Well not quite as the five games that just passed sure do leave us with some interesting questions to ponder ahead of the Proteas’ overseas tours.
Winning - but only just.
It was very much a Series of two halves as they say in the classics, so let’s have a deeper look and see what we are about to take to Frodoland.
Game one – 11 Jan – Proteas won by 258 runs – Paarl
SA 301/8 – SL 43 (20.1 overs) all out
On a blisteringly hot day in Paarl the Proteas top order put the Sri Lankan bowlers to the sword straight away. Amla, Kallis and de Villiers were brilliant but sadly the lower middle order could not capitalize on a strong platform. No matter though, Morne Morkel and Lonwabo Tsotsobe went prison style on the visitors top order and before you could say ‘gee I hope this isn’t going to be too embarrassing’ – Sri Lanka were 43 all out. Dream captaincy debut for AB, and the series was underway.
Game two – 14 Jan – Proteas won by 5 wickets – East London
SL 236/6 – SA 237/5 (48.4 overs)
Batting first the Sri Lankans did a whole lot better in posting a total of 236. It was however never going to be enough with the home team putting in a measured team performance that got them home with no real worries. 2-0 up and things weren’t looking good for Dilshan and his men.
Game three – 17 Jan – Proteas won by 4 runs (D/L) – Bloemfontein
SL 266/9 – SA 179/5 (34 overs)
From 43 to 236 to 266/9 – Sri Lanka were starting to really gather some momentum while the Proteas bowling lineup seemed to be getting a little loose. Add to that the batting strengths of Amla and Kallis not being on hand, things were not looking good as Malinga made some early inroads. But then a tremendous innings from Faf du Plessis got the Proteas back into the game, but one couldn’t help but feel that the rain may have saved the day as the game was evenly poised before Duckworth and Lewis sealed the deal.
Game four – 20 Jan – Sri Lanka won by 5 wickets – Kimberley
SA 299/7 – SL 304/5 (48.4 overs)
With the series wrapped up at 3-0, the Proteas made a few changes with Dale Steyn also going onto the rested list. Graeme Smith finally got into the runs which helped the Proteas get off to a fast start, but again they just failed to really kick on. Even with AB going to 96 rather quickly, they limped in probably 20 or 30 runs shy. And short they were as the Sri Lankans doggedly pulled themselves to the target. They almost fluffed it in places, but Perera came in and batted like a honey badger taking the game away from the Proteas in a matter of minutes
Game five – 22 Jan – Sri Lanka won by 2 wickets – Johannesburg
SA 312/4 – SL 314/8 (49.5 overs)
Confidence back, Sri Lanka put the Proteas into bat at the Wanderers and started rather well. But then the revitalized Smith was out to prove a point scoring his first 100 since 2009. While he was restoring his career, AB was klapping the bowlers like red headed step-children. The start of the innings was slow, but the middle to end was nothing short of blistering. But was it going to be enough on what was clearly a good batting track just like the case in Kimberley? It was not, as the Lankans got off to a frenetic start and managed to stay ahead of the rate throughout. With a century from Sangakkara and meaningful contributions throughout the order, they managed to secure a 2 wicket win despite a rather diabolical collapse at the death.
Coming from behind - Sri Lanka did it well.
Key areas of concern.
AB’s captaincy
In a series that the Proteas were never going to lose, this was the perfect opportunity for AB to get his captaincy role underway. All in all he did pretty well I thought with the most pleasing thing being that his batting was in no way compromised. If anything he looks to be batting with even more purpose than before with the added weight of captaincy topping the run list with 329 runs at an average of 110 and a strike rate of 125.
Bowling depth
This was the biggest concern in this series with a rather iffy Sri Lankan team twice posting a score of 300 + chasing. Morkel was hot and cold as usual, Tsotsobe was good in places but ineffectual in others, then with the rest of the seamers, well Albie Morkel and Wayne Parnell again showed this level is a level too far for them with ball in hand, and Test sensation Vern Philander looked all at sea in the one match he played in. The exclusion of Johan Botha is sure a curious one as his control and ability to build pressure was severely lacking in the series. JP Duminy was called upon to bowl 22 overs which is quite a lot considering he is very much a part timer. This may have had a lot to do with Kallis not playing and Robbie P getting a bit of tap at times, but surely going forward we need to firm up the spin option. It was a shame that Rory Kleinveldt picked up an injury as I would have loved to have seen him have a go. Another player that falls into that category is Merchant de Lange – he must be a consideration for the upcoming tours.
Faf du Plessis
The jury is still out on Faf in my opinion. His knock in Bloem was a brilliant one, but there still seems to be a bit of uncertainty in the way he plays. I would obviously take him to New Zealand even if it’s just to be on the same field as Kyle Mills again, but if he weren’t to get picked I don’t think I will be hugely upset. With Amla, Kallis and AB showing they are the backbone of the side, Smith naturally entrenched in the team for the next 5 years after his 100, and JP looking set to become a firm selection in the team – Faf will have to beat off a whole lot of quality batsmen once everyone is fit and available to get into this side. One can argue that he could drop down the order as a finisher (as we really need one), but I don’t see him accomplishing that.
Next keeper?
AB looked fine at keeper but whether this is the long term solution remains to be seen. We need the next Boucher to cut his international teeth in this format and not having anyone here is a worry. Someone must tour with the Proteas to New Zealand and that is a non-negotiable really.
Speaking of our next keeper, read Sportbilly101′s interview with Daryn Smit from the Dolphins.
The Smith situation
At the beginning of this series, I said that Graeme should no longer be in the ODI setup now that he is no longer captain and should just focus on the Test side. After three matches my call was made stronger than I had ever thought possible as he looked as comfortable at the crease as Julius Malema at Helen Zille’s book club. Now I was a fan of Graeme from the moment he made his debut as a 21 year old against the Aussies where he showed great character in a tough time for SA cricket during the hangover of Hansiegate and having a ginger for a captain. A true fan I remained right up until late last year where I just felt his time was done in this form of the game. I used to take a lot of heat for this support but back then I could always say, though he wasn’t the most graceful or talented, if Graeme faces 50 balls, he will have made a meaningful contribution to the team. But he just kept failing to get to 50 balls let alone a 50 and the signs were all too evident that his best days were over.
Ya, I still got it - Hmm, not so sure...
He will obviously get some runs as he still is at the end of the day is an international batsman, but at what cost will those runs come at for the team? Yes he finished as the second highest run scorer this series with 229 at an average of 46, but those runs came in two dead rubbers. Add to the equation # and Kallis only played two games and the Sri Lankans were all over the place and I think a bit of perspective is had, but I won’t bore you with stats about this situation as supporters of the man are immune to the inconvenient truth.
I am just so tired of this Proteas team being good enough, good enough to win every World Cup good enough to beat anyone on their day – bullshit. We should have hammered those Sri Lankans 5-0 at a canter. It’s time we started being a little bit more. It’s time we started being proper world beaters. What has this got to do with Smith you ask, he just scored a 100? Well band aids are effective but they seldom heal a nasty wound. Graeme has been around for almost a decade, he was an incredible chapter by himself in the Proteas ODI history but he has two failed World Cups under his belt, absolutely no tournament accolades to speak of and when we did win a momentous series in Australia, he wasn’t even there.
He’s only 30, great, that means his role as our Test captain could still reach another level of performance, but there is no next gear for him in ODIs. We all fell over ourselves with excitement when David Warner ripped the Indians a new one recently with some even declaring him the future of cricket. Okay, well who is our Warner? It isn’t Smith, he has lost that ability to grab the opposition bowling attack by the balls and shake it around until they all want to field at fine leg. Yes he scored 100 yesterday, but after 20 overs we only had 80 runs on a good batting wicket cause the guy was making sure he set himself up for a score to justify his selection.
Is Levi our answer to a Warner type batsman?
Have we become so okay with our position in ODI cricket of being ‘good enough’ that we don’t want to see what our talented and in form youngsters can do? And don’t even try play the experience card here as if Graeme is there for experience then he wouldn’t have tried to match AB shot for shot in Kimberley when all he needed to do was rotate the strike and wait for the bad ball. Yes, I’m being critical, but in order to be the best we haven’t got time to be sympathetic or nostalgic. This is cricket at the highest level – not high school.
Bring in the youngsters, give them a chance to at least fail, cause if they do then at least we will be getting somewhere. I’d rather get pumped by trying something new, than be ‘good enough’ doing what we know sort of works.
If Graeme goes onto maintain this form and make my words look like juvenile ramblings, then humble pie I shall consume, I’m no bigot. But I think we both know Graeme isn’t the future of Proteas ODI cricket, especially with AB at the reins.
But enough from me, over to you. Have your say on the Smith situation below:
Tags: ab de villiers, graeme smith, proteas
W.r.t. the next gloveman: Watched the U/19 tournament in Stellenbosch in December and Quintun de Kock is definitely a keeper to watch out for. Solid behind the stumps and devastating with the bat. Check him out here : http://www.espncricinfo.com/southafrica/content/player/379143.html
Smith made scores on easy pitches as did everyone else, and we lost both games. He is out of shape (too many cookies?) and his footwork is terrible. He had his chance, let the new blood take things further.
I think the keeper question is a massive one. Rumours abound. But how the staff handle this one will be very telling.
Agree wholeheartedly on Smith. AB took 45 balls less to make his 125 and all things considered, Smith’s pedestrian innings, on a good pitch, at a small ground, in a dead rubber, in which we only ended up losing 4 wickets, cost us the match. All Smith does is go legside, and he struggles to go over the top, so why on earth is he opening in ODI’s? Add to that his bulk and its easy to see that the man should not be playing any limited overs stuff (not that he’s a shoe-in for tests either). But hey, CSA’ll probably take him to the T20 World Cup, you watch.
I don’t think Smith should be dropped from the team entirely. He can still add value to the team in terms of his leadership and experience. Especially seeming that Kallis won’t be around for THAT much longer if we’re being realistic, which would leave a massive gap in the experience department. And as he proved yesterday, he still has some runs in him. I do however think that he should be moved down the order as I fear he places way too much pressure on the lower order as an opener. We need Levi to open the batting with Amla, and create space for Smith lower down the order.
With regards to wicket keeper I agree that de kock should be given a go. He is young but so what? The Aussies backed Cummins and it has paid off even though its still early days. I’m not saying that he should be made keeper right now, but at least introduce him into the team so he can gain necessary exposure etc. Let him be the back up to AB and allow him the odd game or two. What can we possibly lose by doing that?
I must admit I thought smith must go as well, but if he carries on with this form he needs to hang around, he has one thing that money can’t buy and that is experience, remember when kallis was struggling? If smith must go because he has two world cup failure under his belt then the same could be said about kallis. Both if they remain in form are worth gold to the proteas. But no doubt we need a decent keeper, and our bowlers need to work much harder and must stop relying on dale Steyn the whole time. Albeit morkel is starting to look better than in previous games. Just my 2 cents worth
Smith looks like a bit of a tool on the tele, yet he appears to get on so very well with every Proteas coach for the past ten years. Am I missing something? It is worrying that reports suggest Gary Kirsten and Smith are great buddies, that means we can forget about Smith ever getting the axe under the Kirstn era.
1 hundred (that was WAAAAY too slow) every 2.5 years is simply not good enough. And the whole “experience” thing is rubbish. The score card never reads:
Smith 0 b Malinga (but he has shit loads of experience so we will add 25 runs to the total score).
Until experience can be sold for runs he is passed his prime and should be dropped.
I completely agree that we should have won 5-0, just as we should have won the test series 3-0. And the fact we didn’t means that something is wrong – there are too many lazy / stupid / incomprehensible errors (most things that Parnell does fall into this space).
But as to what the cause of that is, I don’t know. I do think Smith has allowed an unjustified level of arrogance take over our cricket, to the point where maybe we don’t care enough about doing the basics right and live in la-la land.
Best examples:
1. Wanderers test vs Aus – day 1. Instead of saying ‘Right guys, we just had a once in a hundred years bowling performance that won the game, let’s bat more carefully next time’ the entire top order goes nuts on day 1 and we collapse for 260 all out at 4 an over. Then after a miraculous recovery to only concede a 30 run lead and AB and # score runs, there is talk from Smith, Rudolph etc about what a good target will be to declare at – cue Sunday morning horrendous collapse and we are 30 runs short of a winning total that makes for an existing test but one we lose.
2. Kingsmead – besides Marchant de Lange, none of our bowlers deliver consistently, then Rudolph and Smith throw their wickets away and after a settling partnership between AB and Hash, AB gets out to the most obvious set up, chasing a wide one. Cue horrendous collapse, with Boucher, Prince and Morkel looking more than a little confused with the bat. Followed up by more unnecessary wickets in the 2nd innings, with Hash’s run out the most damaging, and yet another pile of wickets by the tail (when maybe, just maybe, we could have batted out the day and the last day could have been rained off or the pitch vandalised by protesting Iranians)
3. Kimberley ODI – all set for 350, AB, JP, Faf lose their wickets and the allrounders fail ridiculously to capitalise, we lose a game we were massive odds on favourites
So I think it’s all Smith’s fault, even if he’s not ODI captain. Drop him. Sack him. Make him pay tax arrears.
Smith faced almost half our innings. We were 25 runs short due to his personal scoring rate of 5.2 / over.
A guy like Gibbs is considered too old but he’s still a great athlete and a superb stroke maker. Not this heave to leg crap. I’d like to see a fitness test of Proteas squad & Gibbs. He would embarrass the younger players.
I’d pick him ahead of Smith in limited overs no question.
i think graeme has had a wonderful run as captain but everything has an expiry date we will remember him as one of the great ones but recent form suggests that he is forty yrs old and not thirty i suggest he bows out gracefully and that the selectors go and scout for young players to mould for the next world cup smith can use his experience and assist kirsten to strenghten the SA cricket brand
This conversation would have had absolutely zero merit had there not been an abundance of talent in this country. I might be biased as a big GK fan, but ultimately he -based on a track record of note- will handle the situation whether he is mates with Graeme or not, don’t think he’ll have as much time as he had with India, but he won’t need it given that we are bursting with talent domestically. Fair to say give them a go now but that’s what’s happened with Ingram, Faf and co. It’s a nice problem to have I reckon, worst case scenario, the talented okes on the fringes will be more motivated than ever, they know Graemes under the kosh, as south Africans chances are they’ll be supporting him but at the sane time they’ll be aiming to make sure that “I’m next in line” with more smashing “look at me” performances. Yes, as supporters we are not tolerators of mediocrity as highlighted above and number 3 in the world is not good enough but these last two games was really about listening to the doubters brigade and providing opportunities for some okes to keep or win a place to tour. And with those collapses in the middle order denying us really big scores in some games, there’s all to play for and huge competition for places. Someone’s going to shine and it’s gonna be stunning for SA cricket. As for the bowling, the lack of Yorkers are incomprehensible! That really is an obvious issue, death bowling. Bothas control and composure is decent, but it’s no auto entry to the team. Keeping? Well I’ve heard about 5 names come up since the tests already, so I think the powers that be will be very clear and decisive when they eventually pick that elusive gloveman that makes the spot his own. Overall, AB seems to be leading from the front. He said in Kinberly he’ll make a hundred in the next game and he did. His high performance mentality and fearless leadership in his new role will spread amongst the team and we will take over the world
When we get to number one, we’ll stay there, and Mickey and his kangaroos will be our closest competitors for a long time 
Ashes? Whatevs :