Ken Borland

FRESH storm clouds are set to gather around Gauteng cricket on Monday night when the Gauteng Cricket Board (GCB) holds its deferred annual general meeting at the Wanderers.

The GCB is being run by an interim board of directors set up by the Langa commission after Cricket South Africa (CSA) took over administration of the union two years ago, after the board sitting at the time became the first to question disgraced CEO Gerald Majola.

That interim board was meant to settle on a new constitution for Gauteng cricket but has failed to reach agreement with the clubs. With its two-year term now over, the future of the current board is uncertain.

It is expected that the board will ask for an extension of its term at the meeting on Monday night, but there is a strong groundswell among the clubs that the current administration should be called to book and replaced.

“The clubs want to vote and they want a new board. The current board are probably going to ask to continue for another six months in order to introduce the new constitution, but if they haven’t been able to do it in two years, why do they think they’ll be able to do it in six months? Besides, the new constitution should not be a private document that only the current board are privy to. We want to elect new representatives to work on the constitution,” a club chairman told Business Day at the weekend.

The legitimacy of the current board has also been called into question following the revelations in the Nicholson Commission of Inquiry that led to Majola being dismissed by CSA and the former GCB board being proven right.

There is a strong desire for self-determination among many Gauteng clubs, who feel they have had no say in the running of cricket in their province for the last two years.

The decision of the board to dismiss Alexandra Cricket Club chairman Dan Phetla, a vocal proponent of control to be returned to the clubs, as a director on Friday night makes it clear the incumbents from the Majola era will not go without a fight.

Thabang Moroe, a fellow director and the chairman of the Black African Cricket Clubs (BACC) grouping, threatened to get the Gauteng Sports Council (GSC) involved in the cricket administration if Phetla was not removed.

The GSC are expected to be present at Monday night’s AGM, with certain clubs accusing the BACC of using them to intimidate those looking to return control of Gauteng cricket to the clubs.

http://www.bdlive.co.za/sport/cricket/2012/12/10/gauteng-cricket-faces-constitution-debacle

Cape Town and Port Elizabeth, the venues for the two Tests against New Zealand this summer, are the two South African cities most like Auckland so the tourists should feel right at home.

And, while the Kiwis have generally had an awkward time in South Africa, losing 14 of the 21 Tests they have played here, two of their three triumphs have come at the two coastal cities.

And, just to make Brendon McCullum’s visitors feel even more at home, they will land in South Africa 50 years after they won Tests in Cape Town and Port Elizabeth – their first ever overseas – to share the 1962 series 2-2.

South Africa’s team is a totally different beast these days, however. They are the number one ranked team in Test cricket and the record-breaking exploits of Graeme Smith, Hashim Amla, Jacques Kallis, AB de Villiers, Dale Steyn, Morne Morkel and Vernon Philander are the greatest in the country’s history.

Back in 1962, South Africa were a team in transition. Captain Jackie McGlew, swashbuckling batsman Roy McLean, wicketkeeper Johnnie Waite and fast bowlers Peter Heine and Neil Adcock were all at the end of their careers, while Eddie Barlow, Peter Pollock, Colin Bland and Tiger Lance were all playing in their first series and would go on to form part of the team that dominated world cricket at the end of the decade.

Having beaten their hosts by 72 runs in the second Test in Cape Town and by 40 runs in Port Elizabeth, New Zealand promptly won their first Test back in South Africa after isolation, winning by 137 runs at the Wanderers in 1994, but since then the Proteas have had a perfect record at home against the Black Caps.

In fact, since losing by nine wickets in Auckland in 2004, South Africa have been totally dominant in Tests against New Zealand.

Ken Rutherford, who captained New Zealand to that 1994 triumph at the Wanderers, is now living in Johannesburg and he believes his countryman are definitely the underdogs.

“On paper, New Zealand are clearly up against it. It will be a huge challenge against the world’s number one team. South Africa have half-a-dozen world-class players, while the current New Zealand team maybe just lacks a bit of star quality.

“South Africa have individuals who can take the game away from you. But New Zealand haven’t played good Test cricket for a while because they haven’t yet recognised that in one hour, someone can take the whole match away from you, they’re less able to spot those opportunities,” Rutherford said.

While the visiting batsmen should find the going relatively easy at Sahara Park Newlands – New Zealand scored 593 for eight declared (Stephen Fleming 262) in their last match there – Port Elizabeth, especially if it is cloudy, could be an entirely different prospect.

With a bit of grass on the pitch, Steyn, Morkel, Philander and Kallis will be out to break the Geneva Convention, but the visiting attack will also enjoy those conditions.

While the Black Caps are without second leading wicket-taker Dan Vettori, whose left-arm spin has frequently chained the South African batsmen down, Chris Martin has prospered against the Proteas before and is the leading wicket-taker in Tests between the two countries. Doug Bracewell has had his moments too, while Trent Boult and Tim Southee are two talented youngsters and Neil Wagner is returning to the country of his birth.

New Zealand’s batting will revolve around the ever-dangerous McCullum, while Martin Guptill and Kane Williamson are not to be underestimated. Their best batsman, Ross Taylor, is not touring however and his replacement, Peter Fulton, did not have a happy time in South Africa in 2005/6, scoring just 65 runs in four innings.

South Africa’s limited-overs contests with New Zealand have often been antagonistic affairs and the abbreviated, all-action nature of T20 cricket means the adrenaline and intensity can only be ramped up a couple of notches.

The history of T20 matches between the two nations goes back to October 2005 when New Zealand played the first T20 international on African soil, beating the Proteas by five wickets at the BidVest Wanderers Stadium.

Since then, however, South Africa have had a clear advantage over the Black Caps, winning six of the last seven encounters.

Those wins have not always been clearcut, however, with South Africa winning off the last ball at the Wanderers in November 2007, by one run at Lord’s in the 2009 ICC World T20, and by just three runs in their last meeting with the Kiwis.

That victory in Auckland in February, bowlers Marchant de Lange, Morne Morkel and Johan Botha strangling the hosts in the last five overs, clinched a hard-fought series win for the Proteas.

New Zealand, led by the chic batting of Martin Guptill, had won the first game and should have won the decider, but were blown away by Richard Levi in the second match.

It seems a long time ago that Levi blasted his astonishing 117 not out off just 51 balls in Hamilton, breaking the world records for fastest T20 century (45 balls) and most sixes (13). The 24-year-old almost inevitably lost form after suddenly finding himself in the international limelight and, by the end of the ICC World T20 in October he had been dropped. But the Nashua Mobile Cape Cobras opener has regained his touch and has been one of the star performers in the Momentum One-Day Cup this year.

The whole ICC World T20 affair is one Proteas coach Gary Kirsten will want to put behind him as quickly as possible as the former India coach completed a miserable record of having lost all nine of the matches he has been involved in in the SuperEights stage of that competition.

The next T20 world cup will be upon us apace in Bangladesh in April 2014, the year before the 50-over World Cup South Africa so desperately want to win, and Kirsten will begin the process of building a new squad when the Proteas face New Zealand in three internationals in Durban, East London and Port Elizabeth over the Christmas period.

Success in twenty20 international cricket has not come as swiftly for Hashim Amla as he would have liked, but Levi has surely done enough to earn a recall, while it is clear Faf du Plessis has what it takes to excel for South Africa in all formats.

Then again, Amla showed during his magnificent 196 off just 221 balls in the Perth Test against Australia that he has the ability to put any attack to the sword, so that trio could make a perfectly acceptable top three.

Jacques Kallis, the most complete cricketer South Africa has ever produced, deserves a rest before the Tests, but AB de Villiers is the perfect batsman to anchor the middle-order.

JP Duminy’s unfortunate injury does leave a hole, however, with Farhaan Behardien and Justin Ontong not enjoying totally convincing form at domestic level.

With Johan Botha, South Africa’s most successful T20 spinner, also out of contention and Morne Morkel and Dale Steyn possibly resting after their heavy workloads in 2012, Kirsten has the chance to clean the slate and introduce some new faces.

Vaughn van Jaarsveld, Ryan McLaren, Hardus Viljoen, Andrew Birch and Aaron Phangiso are all players who have covered themselves in glory in recent months.

New Zealand, meanwhile, are still tearing their hair out over their inconsistency and have injury problems to boot, with Dan Vettori ruled out of the tour with an achilles problem.

WHILE there is still understandable euphoria over South Africa’s Faf du Plessis-inspired great escape in Australia, the series has provided evidence that the Proteas’ pace bowling stocks are not as full as they would like.

South Africa’s rise to the No1 ranking has been built to a large extent on the strike-bowling brilliance of Dale Steyn, Morné Morkel and Vernon Philander, but when one of the trio is injured or not bowling to full capacity, their attack does not look totally convincing.

Rory Kleinveldt has risen up the queue to become the next paceman in line and has played in both Brisbane and Adelaide. But he looked innocuous, save for his three-wicket burst on the third afternoon of the second Test.

Ryan McLaren, meanwhile, could get the chance to start his international career afresh in Perth after being flown over as bowling all-rounder cover for both Jacques Kallis and Philander.

But while this Test generation is dominated by a superb batting line-up and the Steyn/Morkel/Philander bowling trio, these things are cyclical, and fans will await the birth of the next generation of fast bowlers.

So far, the next generation has thrown up Marchant de Lange, who claimed 7/81 against Sri Lanka on his debut in Durban last December.

But seven months later, the Titans youngster developed a stress fracture of the lower back and has been in cotton wool ever since.

De Lange will not be fit to play in the two Tests against New Zealand in January but Vincent Barnes, the national selector and former Proteas bowling coach, who is taking care of the 22-year-old’s rehabilitation, is still pleased with his progress.

“I’ve been tasked with overseeing his recovery from what was quite a serious injury, and it’s a slow process. We’ve mapped it out with the Titans and they send me video clips of every training session he does and a weekly report from the physio.

“It’s going slowly but the big positive is that we’re doing it properly and he’s not being rushed. Marchant is now bowling pain-free off a short run-up and we’re working towards him playing again in late December. But he definitely won’t be ready for the Tests against New Zealand,” Barnes said on Tuesday.

While everyone will be hoping De Lange’s return is not an anticlimax, there is another, more established bowler plotting his own return in Durban.

Lonwabo Tsotsobe missed the tour to the Antipodes because his form, and reportedly his attitude, were at odds with what was required. But Dolphins coach Lance Klusener on Tuesday praised his work ethic with his new franchise team.

“Lopsy has been extremely eager to get stuck in and while I’m really happy with his effort, I’m just sad that he hasn’t had the wickets to show for how hard he’s been training. He’s done his job really well for us, he’s just been unlucky and I’m sure wickets are just around the corner for him,” Klusener said.

Since South Africa’s return from the grim days of apartheid, their fast bowling stocks have been the envy of many — current bowling coach Allan Donald leading the way for the likes of Klusener, Shaun Pollock, Makhaya Ntini and now Steyn and Morkel.

Barnes believes newcomers such as Kleinveldt, Chris Morris and Hardus Viljoen have the potential to swell that list.

“We need to give Rory time, and the important thing is he’s getting better, not worse. And Chris and Hardus have both been quite impressive and both have good pace,” Barnes said.

And talented young fast bowlers such as Beuran Hendricks, Marcello Piedt, Graham Hume and Duanne Olivier have the potential to add their names to that list as well.

http://www.bdlive.co.za/sport/cricket/2012/11/28/series-shows-proteas-need-pace-revamp