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South Africa
South Africa
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Jamie "The Pacman" Pacheco /
07 February 2011 /
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"I was tempted to leave this part blank because I don’t think I can do Kallis’ contribution to this side justice in a couple of paragraphs. You can easily make a case for him being the greatest ODI all-rounder ever and you could probably make a decent one for him being the greatest ODI player as well."
Bottlers, chokers, underachievers. It certainly hasn't been for want of ODI talent that this South African side hasn't won major tournaments but fans and backers are running out of patience and this time they need to deliver under pressure.
Donald, Pollock, Kallis, Kirsten, Gibbs, Cronje, Steyn, Cullinan, Klusener, Smith, Rhodes and Boucher. Just some of the wonderful ODI players who have been available to the Proteas for the last decade and a half yet have been unable to deliver a single major tournament win.
The pain of 1999 still runs deep but that alone can't explain why a side who has batted, bowled and (especially) fielded so well over this period couldn't seal the deal at least once. In his controversial autobiography, former opening batsman Herschelle Gibbs puts the failures down to a combination of a fear of losing and an overly-conservative and mechanical approach to the game. He may be onto something here and if this richly talented squad of players containing a handful of guys at the peak of their physical powers can't do it this time, then it's hard to imagine when they ever will.
The Captain - Graeme Smith
Let's not mess around here, Graeme Smith isn't everyone's cup of tea. And I'm including players within his own camp when I say that. But give credit where credit is due. At just 22 he was handed the South African captaincy in both the Test and ODI formats and eight years later he's still in the job. His captaincy isn't of the subtle variety and he's been as guilty as anyone of stubbornly sticking to premeditated plans rather than thinking on his feet and coming up with solutions based on what's happening around him. But on the plus side, he's a heck of a batsman and slip fielder and at no stage will this side be found wanting for lack of effort and commitment in the field whilst he's still the man in charge. You suspect he needs South Africa to make the final to avoid calls for his head back home.
The Cricketing God - Jacques Kallis
I was tempted to leave this part blank because I don't think I can do Kallis' contribution to this side justice in a couple of paragraphs. You can easily make a case for him being the greatest ODI all-rounder ever and you could probably make a decent one for him being the greatest ODI player as well.
So much responsibility and expectancy has been placed on his broad shoulders over the years that it's little wonder that his hair has thinned to the extent that he's had to 'do a Doug Bolliinger'. But he's never looked like he's been uncomfortable with it all and has just got on with the job, though at 35 it would be unwise to ask him to bowl a full ten overs.
The one and only criticism of him is that he hasn't seen the team home with the bat in a big semi-final when his team have looked to him. You feel he'll have to this time if South Africa are to make the final two.
The speed merchant- Dale Steyn
If you don't have at least one top spinner in your ranks you can forget all about winning the World Cup in Sub-Continental conditions. That said, a bowler who can consistently bowl a good line and length at over 90mph will get wickets and put pressure on the batting side on any track in the world. Meet Dale Steyn. His opening spell with the new ball will give us a very good indication of South Africa's chances of winning any given game and his three years experience of playing in the IPL should prove invaluable.
Hashim Amla
Imran Tahir may well prove to be the missing piece in the South African jigsaw and AB De Villers has a huge role to play with gloves and bat but if we're talking about the potential for big runs look no further than Hashim Amla. He may open the batting or he may come in first wicket down but irrespective of the situation he'll go out and play his natural game, expertly cutting on the off side and flicking the ball off his pads through the on-side.
Recommended Bet:
Back AB De Villiers to be top runscoring keeper at [5.0].
