Cape Town — Proteas Men's captain Temba Bavuma will not quit after his team’s disastrous exit at the T20 World Cup in Australia on Sunday, claiming "it would be an emotional decision right now".
The Proteas required a win over the 13th-ranked Netherlands in their final Group B match to secure a place in the semi-finals. However, the Dutch, who have never beaten the Proteas in any format of the game previously, shocked South Africa with a 13-run victory, condemning Bavuma’s team to a flight home.
The Dutch defeat has further entrenched South Africa’s infamous "chokers" label at major International Cricket Council tournaments.
Bavuma, though, has been the focal point of criticism throughout the tournament with his place in the team under huge scrutiny due to his lack of runs. The skipper struck a run-a-ball 20 at the Adelaide Oval, but was not able to make any meaningful impact in the bid to chase down the Netherlands’ 158/4.
The 32-year-old believes his decision to continue in his leadership roles could also be influenced by the identity of the incoming Proteas Men’s team coach. The horror performance against the Dutch coincided with current coach Mark Boucher’s final game at the helm before he moves on to join the Mumbai Indians at the Indian Premier League.
Cricket South Africa have already installed Malibongwe Maketa as the new interim coach for the Test tour of Australia next month, but are yet to appoint a coach for the limited-overs team.
"It's been a tricky time," Bavuma said. "To be considering that (quitting) now, a lot of it will be emotional, in terms of my role as captain within the team. It's something I will think about. I will speak to the relevant people.
"We have to see who comes in as a coach. Generally when you have changes like that, they might come in with a different style. They might find a different leader to execute whatever vision or style of play that they have. It will be emotional now if I think about all of that. And if I were to leave I would leave with my pride intact."
To rub further salt into the Proteas’ team wounds, the Dutch side had four players - Roelof van Merwe, Colin Ackerman, Brandon Glover and Stephan Myburgh - that were born in South Africa, and they all had a major impact on the match.
Myburgh struck 37 at the top of the order before Ackerman finished off the innings with an undefeated 41. Glover claimed 3/20 while Van der Merwe, who played in two previous T20 World Cups for the Proteas back in 2009 and 2010, claimed the match-defining catch to dismiss South Africa’s big-hitter David Miller.
Bavuma also said that the Proteas will never rid themselves of the "chokers" tag until they actually win a major ICC tournament.
"I think it will always be there until we find ourselves in a situation where we get to the final and we actually come out on the right side of that result. We have nothing to blame. Everything was in our hands," he said.
"It is disappointing for all of us. The most disappointing thing was that we didn't get over the line when we had to. And when it mattered we could not do the business. We will still carry that monkey on our backs."
IOL Sport