Rain Kills the final twice

There are a lot of interesting things going on in cricket these days, such as Russell Domingo becoming the coach of the Proteas T20 squad, Faf du Plessis becoming captain of that squad, a number of new call-ups into the Proteas T20 squad including Henry Davids, Quinton de Kock, Chris Morris and Aaron Phangiso. Let’s not forget the controversy around New Zealand cricket management and Ross Taylor taking a break from cricket. The Momentum 1 Day Cup final looked like it would have been a very interesting game but the weather saw that it would not be played.

The final was scheduled for 14 December between the Lions and the Cobras but it was rained out. The game was then moved to the next day, but it was rained out again. The Cobras and the Lions ended up sharing the trophy. It was a match I was really looking forward to, and I am a bit disappointed there was no completed contest. 

I have to say though that I think Stephen Cook, the Lions captain, was right when he said that neither team deserved to lose. I believe it was a bit strange that the rain caused the abandonment of the same game, on two different days, oh well, next time.

Stephen Cook (30) - Lions Captain and Justin Ontong (32) - Cobras captain. Pictures taken from  espncricinfo.com and supersport.com

Number 1 still, and a look at team selection

The Proteas beat Australia with class by 309 runs, helping them retain their number one test ranking. 

The Proteas after winning the test series against Australia 1 - 0 on the day of Ricky Ponting's international retirement, holding on to their number one ranking. Picture taken from http://sports.ndtv.com

With so  many good players being available for test selection, the choices regarding selection are hard. This is a very good thing. Duminy got injured, so du Plessis played for him, and he played brilliantly. The Proteas have immense depth in batting. Even if Duminy does not play for a long time the squad still includes Elgar, Duplessis and Rudolph to choose from. I think David Miller and Richard Levi deserve a look at for test cricket.



All three of our fast bowlers did well in the last test. However, the Proteas should look at the reserves. Rory Kleinveldt is obviously a good player. However, he didn't impress me when he played in the second test match. Ryan McLaren is also good, but I think the selectors should try find a better bowler than either of these two. I think McLaren should stay as a back-up all rounder in case there is an injury, but it would be nice to have another good fast bowler in reserve, Marchant de Lange perhaps, or Parnell. 

AB Devilliers is doing well with the gloves, but prudently, we still have Thami Tsolekile as back-up. This is perfect. But maybe some work should be done by selectors to look for young keepers who we could call on in the future.

Selecting a spinner has always been hard for South Africa. Between Robin Peterson and Imran Tahir it is hard to pick a favourite. Tahir has done better in domestic cricket but has not done as well as Peterson internationally. For me they are both almost equally good spinners. I think though that because Peterson is better with the bat and in the field, he should play more in tests. Of course, I also think younger spinners should be looked at. Dane Piedt of the Cobras is possibly a future option for SA.

Ponting retiring

What can you say about the retirement of Ricky Ponting. Ex-Australian captain in Tests and ODIs and legend with the bat and in the field. He who once led one of the best cricket teams in history.

There is not much to say. He was brilliant as a captain, a batsman and a fielder. He led Australia to numerous wins as the best team in tests and ODIs for many years. He captained Australia in their 2003 and 2007 world cup victories. He was Australia's most successful captain, being the skipper in 48 victorious test and 164 one-day matches.

For me Ponting, Kallis and Tendulkar make up the Big Three in our age of cricket batsmen. In terms of lengthy and successful batting careers, they are the best. Of course Ponting had to retire one day, but it is still strange to think about what Australian cricket would be like without him.

I take my hat off to him. He served Australian cricket for so long and with such vigour. Well done Ricky Ponting. I hope he, his wife and two daughters can benefit from the time he has available after finishing with Tasmania in a few months.

Ricky Ponting (37 years old). Picture taken from http://www.bolegaindia.com

Was he Australia's greatest ever cricketer? What do you think?

Hero

Faf Duplessis (28 years old). Picture taken from IOL sport

I have to eat my words.

In my last post I said that Dean Elgar or David Miller should replace JP Duminy ahead of Faf du Plessis in the second test match between Australia and South Africa. Not that Elgar is a lesser batsman, but du Plessis was selected, and ended up playing two brilliant innings. The second innings was nothing short of heroic.

He made 78 (159) and 110* (376) saving the test match and proving his mettle. His second innings reminded me of one Neil McKenzie played against England at Lords when he scored 138 off 446 balls to help SA to a draw after finding themselves in an incredibly poor position.

Like I did with AB de Villiers and Graeme Smith, I wrote du Plessis off after a few international shortcomings, only to be proven immensely wrong of the existence of tremendous batting talent and ability. I hope he is selected again in future test matches and ODIs.

Who should replace Duminy?

The first test match between South Africa and Australia ended in a draw with neither side dominating the other. Michael Clarke's 259 not out off 398 balls was brilliant. The Proteas need to work on their bowling against the Australian Batsmen. An even more pressing matter though is with whom they should replace JP Duminy with.

There are two test matches left, the next one only starting on the 22nd of November. For me Rory Kleinveldt is not a great test bowler, he didn't prove it either in the match. The Proteas should replace him with a spinner. Maybe Imran Tahir, or another person perhaps.

I am certain that selectors will consider Francois du Plessis and Dean Elgar as suitable replacements for Duminy. They are both good batsmen and can bowl part-time spin. However for me, du Plessis has failed too many times in the international arena and I think he should not be given another chance. Elgar is definitely a good option. 

According to espncricinfo.com he has scored 5326 runs in first class cricket at an average of 44.75. So he's quite good.

Dean Elgar (25) Picture taken from the Gauteng Cricket Board website

For me though. I think David Miller should be given a chance. He's proven he can play very well in limited over competitions and has done so in international games. He was brilliant in the Hong Kong sixes, which the  South African team actually won this year. He outshone captain Colin Ingram in a few of the HK6s games. 
Though his statistics are not as impressive, they are ever improving and I think he is becoming one of the best batsment in south africa.

David Miller (23) Picture taken from the Gauteng Cricket Board website

Champions League Twenty 20 Final

I am really looking forward to the Champions League Twenty 20 final between the Highveld Lions and the Sydney Sixers tomorrow. Chris Morris and Moises Henriques are two brilliant talents in the side. Both all-rounders are the same age and I hold them both in high regard. (Moises Henriques' name is in pink because the Sydney Sixers' kit is pink in case you were wondering)

For me Chris Morris is becoming one of the best all-rounders in South African domestic cricket. According to ESPN cricinfo his stats are as follows:

Batting and fielding averages

	Mat	Inns	NO	Runs	HS	Ave	BF	SR	100	50	4s	6s	Ct	St
First-class	28	44	7	1408	154	38.05	1741	80.87	3	6	163	33	24	0
List A	22	15	2	307	90*	23.61	279	110.03	0	1	29	11	9	0
Twenty20	23	12	7	144	32*	28.80	80	180.00	0	0	12	7	11	0

Bowling averages

	Mat	Inns	Balls	Runs	Wkts	BBI	BBM	Ave	Econ	SR	4w	5w	10
First-class	28	46	3686	1972	78	8/44	12/101	25.28	3.20	47.2	6	2	1
List A	22	20	674	605	21	4/30	4/30	28.80	5.38	32.0	2	0	0
Twenty20	23	22	477	540	33	4/22	4/22	16.36	6.79	14.4	2	0	0

Chris Moirris (25)

His last match against Delhi Daredevils in the semifinal was excellent. Hi got 2-7, getting the crucial wickets of Kevin Pietersen and David Warner, in four overs effectively bowling them out of the game. The dynamism of him and  Phangiso compliment the experience of Nannes and Tanvir.

The Sydney Sixers cannot be taken lightly. They have players like Moises Henriques, Steve Smith, Pat Cummins and Brett Lee. 

Moises Henriques is for me one of the best all-rounders in the world who hardly plays for his country. 

According to ESPN cricinfo his stats are as follows: 

Batting and fielding averages

	Mat	Inns	NO	Runs	HS	Ave	BF	SR	100	50	4s	6s	Ct	St
ODIs	2	2	0	18	12	9.00	30	60.00	0	0	0	0	0	0
T20Is	1	1	0	1	1	1.00	2	50.00	0	0	0	0	0	0
First-class	34	59	8	1610	161*	31.56	3140	51.27	1	10	170	13	16	0
List A	51	45	7	963	78	25.34	1190	80.92	0	3	67	17	23	0
Twenty20	59	52	9	912	70	21.20	737	123.74	0	2	74	22	32	0

Bowling averages

	Mat	Inns	Balls	Runs	Wkts	BBI	BBM	Ave	Econ	SR	4w	5w	10
ODIs	2	2	90	84	1	1/51	1/51	84.00	5.60	90.0	0	0	0
T20Is	1	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
First-class	34	49	3667	1905	70	5/17	6/94	27.21	3.11	52.3	3	2	0
List A	51	47	1877	1664	40	3/29	3/29	41.60	5.31	46.9	0	0	0
Twenty20	59	51	905	1275	44	3/11	3/11	28.97	8.45	20.5	0	0	0

Moises Henriques (also 25)

De Villiers and Amla are LEGENDS

De Villiers and Amla both just made half-centuries against England in the final ODI. The game's not over though. I hope they can finish it for us.

Number one

The Proteas have beaten England 2-0 in the test series making them the new number one test team in the world. Can they hold this position? I hope so.

South Africa's 3rd test score score saved by 3 outstanding innings.

Batting against England on 16 August 2012 we opted to bat, were in deep trouble early, but were saved by three great scores. Rudolph 42. Duminy 61. Philander currently not out on 46. SA finished day 1on 262/7

Taken from supersport.com

Taken from Google images

Taken from Google images

So SA has a lead. Hoping that we're either going to draw this one or miraculously win in the short time we have.

Alviro Peterson is looking great out there in the crease. Hope he makes a huge score.

Thought this was excellent. Well done Amla. Hope you can do it again sometime. Looking forward to the next test starting on Thursday. With England making some changes it should play out differently to the last match.

19 July is the first test match against England. It will be good

The triangular series was disappointing for the Proteas. But well done to Zim, they played very very well, particularly in the last game. The Euro looks exciting now.

I really enjoyed watching the IPL final. Kallis played like a champ and made South Africa proud. Most credit should go to Bisla who played a brilliant innings.

IPL semis

So the teams going to the IPL 2012 semis are Delhi Daredevils, Kolkata Knight Riders, Chennai Super Kings and Mumbai Indians. Great teams, great players. Hoping to see Kallis, Albie, Morne, and any other South Africans I've failed to mentions represent their country well. Feels good to post again