In a bid to find answers, the Proteas continue to find questions instead.

The big debates around Proteas' World Cup selection.

In a bid to find answers, the Proteas continue to find questions instead. A few months left before the T20 world cup and the South African coaching staff, together with the selectors find themselves in a position where they need to make some really difficult decisions. The t20i series against India showed that there were a lot of questions that required answering but nobody knew how massive these questions were until the series against England.

 The Proteas took on England at the back end of a drawn 5 match series against India in India. The series against India gave everyone a clear indication of what the team needed to do going forward and what gaps needed to be filled in the squad. The Proteas started the series against India very well but could not finish off when they could. In terms of selection, the team did not try many things and players, but kept pretty much the same team throughout.

The Proteas normally go into a World Cup at the back end of multiple good bilateral series performances from their main players. However, this coming T20i World Cup, things will be very different. There are currently a lot of questions and debates around the possible World Cup squad. The selectors will have their work cut out of them and regardless of whatever decision they make, a meltdown from the fans is almost inevitable. Everything has been happening in the Proteas camp right now from Temba getting injured, Reeza finding form, the return of Rilee Rossouw and Quinny losing form. All of these affect the team and team selection one way or the other.

I had personally been complaining about the team not having an identity and a playing style that they would stick to and look to win with. However, things seem to have changed in that regard. It may not necessarily be a playing style that most of us agree with but, I am happy that the team has adopted a playing style and has stuck to it. This will hopefully continue up until the World Cup and beyond.

The only questions now are questions around selection. Questions around whether certain players should make the world cup squad, questions around whether certain players should even be in the squad to begin with. The list of questions is as long as my arm. Let us look at the key questions and the players involved below.

Temba Bavuma

Temba is probably the biggest talking point currently when it comes to the Proteas and the T20i World Cup. Temba has done well with the team as captain and has led the team well but questions around whether he makes the team as a batter alone have caused a lot of debate recently. This is obviously due to his form or lack thereof. Before getting injured, Temba had been struggling to score runs and had been scoring too slowly. Looking at how the team played against England Ireland, How Reeza batted against both countries, it is hard to see how Temba can be slotted back into the side without necessarily messing up the balance of the side. Would an allrounder be dropped or would Reeza have to sit out or would they go in with a top 3 that has both Temba and Reeza. Based on how Temba and Reeza bat, having both in the same XI might not be ideal because they tend to be similar. However, Temba is captain and when he was made captain, the World Cup is something that was at the back of their minds. Depending on his fitness, Temba might get a chance to try and win fans and selectors over against India again just before the World Cup. With all that being said, dropping your captain just before a World Cup is not something that is common nor easy to do so it will take a lot of bravery from selectors to do it. If Temba remains, he will have to work very hard on his form and scoring rate. He currently averages 20 at 103.39 strike rate in 2022 and his World Cup numbers are far from being any better.

Quinton de Kock

Another talking point among fans currently is the form of Quinton de Kock. Even though he scored 92 in an ODI against England not so long ago, Quinny’s form in T20 Internationals has been worrying this year. His strike rate has also continued to drop which is something that has raised the concerns around him even more. A lot of people have started mentioning the idea of dropping Quinny and maybe letting Heinrich Klaasen keep. However, I do not think dropping a player like Quinny just before a world cup would be a great idea considering what he brings to the team and how he balances the side. Quinton does not only bring his batting prowess to the table but also brings his experience, seniority and his exceptional wicket keeping. He will know that he needs runs and will also be desperate to get back to his best form. The other issue with dropping Quinton is the fact that you would have to change the balance of your side completely. Would you bring in a like for like replacement from outside the squad or would you bring in Klaasen who technically requires that the whole balance of the side changes? David Miller would also have to drop down the order even further. Quinny too, will be looking to get some runs against India as build up to the world cup.

Reeza Hendricks

Reeza has been in the form of his life and has really made sure that whenever the idea of dropping someone comes up, it is not him. At first, we asked if 3 innings were enough to keep Reeza in the side, but he went and made it 4 50+ scores and a 42 to go with. His form and consistency were not the only things that were a concern because his Strike rate was also on the low side for most parts. He took the series against England and Ireland used both to prove that one, he can score consistently, two, he can score quickly even though his 42 was much slower than the 50s and three, that his form had improved. He is partly the reason there are questions around Temba’s return into the side. Would Temba walk straight into the side and replace Reeza, would he sit out or would both play?

Rilee Rossouw and HE van Dussen

Rassie had been the regular number 3 for the T20i side except for the series against India where Dwaine Pretorius came in at 3. Rilee made his return into the side ahead of Rassie and did exceptionally. A lot of people were not sure how Rilee would do and there may still be questions around whether he should replace Rassie as the number 3 or should he play second fiddle to Rassie. Rilee plays aggressively and takes the attack to the opposition from the onset while someone like Rassie comes in and looks to play himself in which may cost the team more often than not. His overall average and strike may be on the higher side but they both do not speak of how he tends to face a lot of deliveries before he gets going. He also does not rotate strike which results in him accumulating many dot balls. Yes, Rassie’s way of playing has yielded positive results at times, but it is a playing style that will cost you matches often. It will be interesting to see whether the selectors opt for Rilee in the starting XI or Rassie. Rassie, much like Temba is not only struggling for form currently but has poor world cup numbers. Both Rassie and Temba scored relatively slow at the last T20i World Cup

The Allrounders

The Allrounder stocks for South Africa look good as far as talent is involved but the issue has been with translating the talent into consistent performances with both bat and ball. The 3 allrounders in the squad currently each possess something that the others lack to make them a complete allrounder. The change up skills of an Andile, the death bowling, swing, and pace of a Parney together with the powerful hitting of a Dwaine would make a powerful allrounder but unfortunately, they cannot be fused into one. The competition is currently between Wayne Parnell and Dwaine Pretorius if the selectors decide to go for 1 allrounder and Andile is likely to miss out even if they decide to pick two allrounders. Andile’s form with both bat and ball in T20is means that he is currently SA’s 3rd best allrounder. Andile’s skill set with ball saw him break into the top 10 rankings of bowlers in t20Is, but his recent form has been way below par and his bowling economy makes him the most expensive bowler in the side currently. The Proteas will be looking to pick someone who can provide solid support for the frontline bowlers in terms of wicket taking ability and the ability to keep things tight. Wayne Parnell has done well with the ball upon his return into the side. He has kept things tight and has taken wickets while Dwaine Pretorius has struck the ball at a high strike rate and has been useful with the ball too. Andile took some key wickets against England but he was very expensive.

The current debates around selections suggest that there should be a certain degree of competition among players and that no player will currently be feeling too secure about their place in the side. This could possibly help increase the intensity of the team and the level of dedications because everyone will be looking to book their place in the World Cup squad and World Cup playing XI. It will be interesting to see how things go heading into the World Cup. The selectors and coaching staff have some tough choices to make. Perhaps the team’s success could sit heavily on the bravery of selectors as the old cliché saying says, “Fortune favours the brave”