Cape Town - With Cricket SA set to announce the Proteas T20 squad this Tuesday morning for the T20 World Cup in Australia next month, there has been plenty of speculation about who will make the trip Down Under.
The most-debated topic is, of course, the make-up of the Proteas batting unit, particularly the top order. The most recent series against England and Ireland were resounding successes, with the Proteas winning both series 2-1 and 2-0 respectively.
More importantly, the batters set the tone with opener Reeza Hendricks leading the way with Player of the Series performances in both series. Hendricks struck 180 runs at an average of 60 and strike-rate of 156.52 against England, and a further 116 runs at 58 and strike-rate 124.73 against Ireland.
The 33-year-old Lions star is certainly in the form of his life, which he continued in the Global T20 Namibia where he struck a further three half-centuries in four matches, including an undefeated 94 off 59 balls in the final against the Lahore Qalanders.
Furthermore, the return of Kolpak exile Rilee Rossouw (131 runs, average 65.50, strike-rate 170.12) and the emergence of Tristan Stubbs (95 runs, average 47.50, strike-rate 215.90) has provided significant T20 batting depth, especially with the Proteas already boasting 4th ranked Aiden Markram, Rassie van der Dussen (13) and Quinton de Kock (20) and David Miller (37).
This, of course, leaves the Proteas selectors with a quandary in regards to where captain Temba Bavuma fits into the squad - let alone the starting XI - after he missed the tour of the United Kingdom through injury.
National convenor of selectors Victor Mpitsang has made it clear that Bavuma is the leader of the Proteas white-ball squads and will be in Australia now that his elbow has healed.
So, who is going to be the batter that misses out?
Van der Dussen currently has an injured finger that has ruled him out of the Test series decider against England at the Oval this weekend, but he should have recovered by the time the T20 World Cup gets underway.
On pure recent form, De Kock would be the most under pressure with South Africa’s wicket-keeper/opener scoring just 67 runs at an average of 9.57 and strike-rate of 100.00 in eight matches this calendar year.
But there is no way the Proteas are heading to a T20 World Cup in Australia without De Kock, even after all the upheaval he caused at last year’s tournament in Dubai.
That leaves Heinrich Klaasen. The back-up wicket-keeper. Klaasen showed off his capabilities on the previous tour of India where he played a match-winning innings in the second match of the series, and struck a couple of cameos in England.
He seems the most “droppable” at the moment, especially with each squad allowed to travel with three reserves, which means the Proteas could call on his services should there be a wicket-keeper emergency.
The bowlers select themselves with the two spinners Tabraiz Shamsi and Keshav Maharaj set to be accompanied by Markram’s part-time off-spin.
Kagiso Rabada will lift himself for the big stage - like he did at Lord’s in the Test series - after a couple of quiet T20’s. Lungi Ngidi’s variations have been a major asset in the shorter formats, while Anrich Nortje will provide the raw speed.
This leaves the all-rounders. It has been the cause of conjecture for a long while now. Andile Phehlukwayo rejuvenated his T20 ambitions with a couple of crucial strikes during the England series, but his economy rate of 11.36 still leaves plenty of questions.
Dwaine Pretorius remains solid, although his strategy of the wide yorker at the death that was so successful in the United Arab Emirates last year seems to have been worked out by the opposing batters.
Another Kolpak returnee Wayne Parnell has been the most impressive with the ball, delivering a career-best 5/30 in the final T20I against Ireland in Bristol. He also complements the Proteas attack with his left-arm variation.
Fellow left-armer Marco Jansen could be a revelation on the hard-bouncy Australian pitches, but the youngster hasn’t been given sufficient opportunities at T20 International level to warrant inclusion and may have to be content with a place among the reserves.
LIKELY PROTEAS T20 WORLD CUP SQUAD
Temba Bavuma (capt)‚ Quinton de Kock‚ Reeza Hendricks‚ Keshav Maharaj, Aiden Markram‚ David Miller‚ Lungi Ngidi‚ Anrich Nortjé‚ Wayne Parnell‚ Dwaine Pretorius‚ Kagiso Rabada‚ Rilee Rossouw, Tabraiz Shamsi‚ Tristan Stubbs‚ Rassie van der Dussen.
Reserves: Andile Phehlukwayo, Heinrich Klaasen, Marco Jansen
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