Ken Borland

It says much for the environment at the Imperial Lions that they were able to pardon top-order batsman Dominic Hendricks for averaging just 21.93 in the 2017/18 season, keeping their faith in him and now reaping the benefits as the diminutive left-hander has averaged more than 40 in the three first-class seasons, including the current one, since then.

The 30-year-old Hendricks has scored two centuries in four matches this season and has the seventh-highest runs tally in the four-day competition thus far. Clearly he is repaying the faith shown in him by the two-time defending champions.

“I never thought that my career was in trouble because at the Lions they have created a set-up that even if you play badly then you are still backed and encouraged to go out and express yourself. Then you just have to make sure you ride the wave when you come out on the other side. In the past two years I have been really good, but I wasn’t quite where I should have been three seasons ago.

“But at the back end of Enoch Nkwe’s season as coach [2018/19], I ran with some form and I was able to transfer it to both formats. I’m loving opening the batting again, before I was coming in at three or four, and I have more understanding of my game now. Not much has changed technically, but I now realise what I’m capable of and when I’m in, I cash in, I’m starting to get hundreds,” Hendricks said at the Wanderers on Thursday.

The Lions made a disappointing start to their title defence this season, getting thumped by the Dolphins in Durban and then being held to a draw by the winless Cape Cobras at the Wanderers, but Hendricks said it was just not taking their chances that came back to ail them. And excellent wins in their last two matches – against the high-flying Knights and the Warriors in Port Elizabeth – proves the point that all is well in the Lions camp.

“We played good cricket in patches at the start of the season, but we were unlucky with the weather against the Cobras, we lost a day and a bit in that match. But we did not take all our chances in those games and in the last couple of matches we’ve put that right and we’ve been fortunate with the weather. We’ve been playing some good cricket.

“We’ve had two very different sides in the last two games and the biggest thing has been that the guys stepping in have really stood up to the task. Wiaan Mulder and Wesley Marshall have also scored hundreds and Josh Richards got runs, and Sisanda Magala has been taking wickets so we have a really competitive squad. Getting the Proteas back this weekend will not be too disruptive because it’s been happening the last few years,” Hendricks said.

South Africa’s new Test captain will take office on Friday with Cricket South Africa due to make the announcement following a lengthy meeting between the selectors and director of cricket Graeme Smith on Thursday afternoon.

While Smith said back in April that white-ball skipper Quinton de Kock will not be the Test captain as well due to workload concerns – a decision the wicketkeeper/batsman has backed – there have been recent mutterings that, with a new convenor of selectors in place in Victor Mpitsang, that position might be revisited.

But Mpitsang, newly installed as convenor, is unlikely to want to rock the boat too much as he presides over his first Test squad. There was certainly nothing controversial or left-field in the white-ball squads chosen for the curtailed series against England, and it is most likely that a placeholder captain will be put in place on Friday.

That’s because two of the most obvious candidates for the captaincy – batsmen Aiden Markram and Temba Bavuma – have not exactly cemented their places in the Test line-up.

Markram averaged just 28.61 in 2019 and needs to win his place in the XI back after injuring himself in the Boxing Day Test a year ago against England. While he has almost certainly done that by scoring three successive centuries for the Titans in four-day cricket, he now needs to regain that consistency at international level.

Bavuma returned to the side for the final Test against England, scoring 27 and 6 as South Africa’s batting disappointed at the Wanderers, and he averaged just 19.84 in 2019. And in all cricket this summer he has scored just 150 runs in six innings, plus he will not be playing in this weekend’s round of four-day matches for the Imperial Lions, having been released to attend to personal matters.

But with Faf du Plessis having retired from Test cricket, Bavuma is almost certain to keep his place in the Test team, although making him captain would appear to be placing unnecessary pressure on him whilst his Test future is still uncertain.

Rassie van der Dussen has shown great leadership qualities ever since he made his Proteas debut in October 2018. But he is still making his way in Test cricket, having only played four matches.

The Proteas do, however, have a ready-made candidate to take over the captaincy from Du Plessis, even if it is just as a stand-in for a couple of seasons. Dean Elgar is established in the Test team, having scored 3888 runs in 63 matches at the solid average of 38.49, considering South Africa is the toughest place to open the batting.

The 33-year-old Elgar is highly respected in the changeroom, especially for his indomitable qualities, and has openly put his name in the hat for the captaincy. Plus he has done the job before – leading the team against England at Lord’s in 2017 and to victory over Pakistan in Johannesburg in January 2019.

With South African cricket in such turmoil at the moment and the Proteas languishing in a woeful eighth place in the ICC World Test Championship, now is the time for stability and not gambling.

A concession made by the Sri Lankan government which allows their team to quarantine for just three days upon their return to the island has played an integral part in their Test series against the Proteas over the festive season being able to go ahead.

When England left these shores blaming breaches of the bio-bubble for their own players’ unwillingness to play the ODI series and then promptly announced that their first Test in Sri Lanka would commence on January 14, there were grave concerns that Sri Lanka would pull the plug on the tour to South Africa. With the New Years Test at the Wanderers only scheduled to end on January 7, that would leave them less than a week to return home and quarantine before taking on the notoriously finicky English.

But The Citizen has learnt that the Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports of Sri Lanka, Honourable Namal Rajapaksa, has granted the team permission, because they are going from one bubble into another, to only quarantine for three days, enabling them to honour their commitments to both South Africa and England.

Cricket South Africa director of cricket Graeme Smith said although he could not comment specifically on Sri Lanka’s return policy, “we have been instructed to test on certain days towards the end of the series for their return to Sri Lanka”.

Discussions with their sports ministry and an assessment conducted by Sri Lanka Cricket’s medical unit headed by Professor Arjuna de Silva, saw SLC gain approval for the tour, which starts with the Boxing Day Test at Centurion from December 26.

Sri Lanka coach Mickey Arthur, who was last in his homeland as coach of Pakistan two years ago, will leave for South Africa ahead of the team, along with a health specialist, to further assess the situation and make all necessary arrangements for the team’s arrival.

Bulls coach Jake White certainly seems to have located his best starting XV and there is little doubt it is the side that will run out on to Kings Park on Saturday evening to play the Sharks in a Currie Cup thriller.

Barring Marnus Potgieter making his Currie Cup starting debut on the right wing that is. The 21-year-old is promoted from the bench because Travis Ismaiel is unable to fill the vacancy created by David Kriel moving back to fullback because he has just had a shoulder operation. Potgieter is 1.87 metres tall, weighs 94kg and played twice for the Blue Bulls in the 2018 SuperSport Rugby Challenge.

“Marnus has been a great junior player, he was at Affies and a member of the 4×100 metre relay team and has come through the ranks here at Loftus. He has lots of pace and he’s big and strong,” White said.

Apart from Ismaiel, all the familiar faces are back as White also moved Kurt-Lee Arendse back to left wing, Ivan van Zyl returns at scrumhalf, Ruan Nortje will start again in the second row and Trevor Nyakane and Jacques van Rooyen are the starting props.

Springbok Marcel van der Merwe, the tighthead who was replaced after 34 minutes against the Free State Cheetahs last weekend, is nowhere to be found on the bench though. White said he still has faith though in the 30-year-old even though 22-year-old Mornay Smith will be the replacement tighthead against the Sharks.

“We still back Marcel and we will help him through it, he had a long-term injury and has not played much rugby. I’m not going to discard him, we will help him back on the horse. Maybe the Free State loosehead prop was able to get away with a bit, there’s been lots of debate about that,” White said.

The former Springbok coach did however praise the influence of Nyakane both on and off the field.

“Marcel will come right and Trevor almost did the same things as Marcel and we got rewarded, so I’m just thankful that referee Jaco Peyper is good enough and experienced enough to see the whole picture. There’s a misconception that we took off our tighthead because he was struggling, but it was because we wanted the loosehead to try and do the same things to Trevor.

“It’s not as if Trevor came on and waved a wand, but he showed stability and the players around him obviously get confidence from that. I haven’t worked with Trevor before but he’s been really good both on and off the field – right now he’s having one-on-ones with young Jan-Hendrik Wessels on loosehead versus tighthead,” White said.

Bulls team: David Kriel, Marnus Potgieter, Stedman Gans, Cornal Hendricks, Kurt-Lee Arendse, Morné Steyn, Ivan van Zyl, Duane Vermeulen (capt), Arno Botha, Marco van Staden, Ruan Nortje, Walt Steenkamp, Trevor Nyakane, Johan Grobbelaar, Jacques van Rooyen. Bench – Schalk Erasmus, Gerhard Steenekamp, Mornay Smith, Sintu Manjezi, Nizaam Carr, Embrose Papier, Chris Smith, Marco Jansen van Vuren.