Ken Borland

Chasing boundaries and trying to get to 200 on a subcontinent turner can be as tempting as the allure of a huskey-voiced temptress, but it can be disastrous and Proteas batsman Aiden Markram says these are the lessons he has had to learn as he adapts to a new role in T20 cricket.

With South Africa enjoying so many top-order options – Quinton de Kock, Temba Bavuma, Reeza Hendricks and Janneman Malan are all in the mix to open – Markram has slipped down a bit into the middle-order. Particularly on the subcontinent, that can be the toughest place to bat, but the 26-year-old seems to be learning when to be patient and when to go for it, judging by his well-paced 48 off 33 balls that took the Proteas to a winning total of 163-5 in the first T20 in Colombo on Friday night.

“It’s quite tough to judge what a winning total will be sometimes, and I haven’t been in that situation too often. You have to trust the information you get from the sidelines, Quinton de Kock usually gives a rough ball-park figure and I was able to chat with David Miller, who is very experienced. We thought 160 was good, slightly above par in those conditions, but we still had to bowl well.

“It’s a new challenge not opening the batting, obviously I have not done it much. But I’m enjoying it and it requires you to be street-smart in how you approach your innings. I’m used to being up front where your game-plan is fixed, set in stone. But you can’t be like that at No.3 or 4, your approach has to be flexible and it changes from game-to-game,” Markram said.

The Proteas cross swords again with Sri Lanka at the same venue on Sunday and stand-in captain Keshav Maharaj wants the same intensity to ensure his team wrap up the series at the first opportunity. They will then be able to go into next month’s T20 World Cup in good form having won eight of their last 10 matches. The home side will be angered by their defeat and will come out firing.

“It’s really important for us to show intensity and energy. We understand what’s at stake and we want to be as clinical as possible. We need to stick to the basics and repeat what was good from the previous game. In terms of our preparation for the T20 World Cup, we must make sure we take care of the series by winning the next game, knowing that Sri Lanka will bounce back.

“I’m a very open-minded captain, but I do demand a lot of energy and intensity. That’s the best way to bring out your character and the best things in your game. Body language is also important because it conveys a message to the opposition.

“The batting is starting to get better with Quinny and Reeza Hendricks setting a foundation and Aiden and David were sublime at the end. The bowlers set the tone in the powerplay – to only concede 34 runs is almost unheard of on the subcontinent – and then they were superb in finishing the game off,” Maharaj said.

South Africa levelled their three-match ODI series against Sri Lanka in Colombo on Saturday, winning the second ODI by 67 runs in a rain-affected match, victory being achieved through the medium of the traditional principles of winning 50-over cricket.

They won the toss and batted first, opener Janneman Malan getting a masterful 121 and the rest of the top-order supporting him in successive partnerships of 43, 96, 38 and 86.

With Heinrich Klaasen providing the explosive finish with his impressive 43 off 27 balls, South Africa were able to post a commanding 283 for six in 47 overs, the match being shortened due to a wet outfield after showers in the morning.

Ace fast bowler Kagiso Rabada then struck twice in the fifth over and, with medium-pacer Wiaan Mulder also chipping in with the new ball, Sri Lanka were rocked early on as they struggled to 19 for three.

And then the South African spinners took over, Keshav Maharaj, on his Proteas captaincy debut, squeezing the batsmen hard with one for 32 in eight overs, and Tabraiz Shamsi bringing his wicket-taking ability to the fore with a career-best five for 49 in 7.4 overs.

It was in impressive all-round display by the Proteas and there were several important contributors who supported the main stars.

Aiden Markram (21) helped ensure a solid start with the bat, before Reeza Hendricks came in and batted with beautiful fluency to stroke 51 off 54 balls and ensure the Proteas took momentum into the middle overs.

Malan went through tough times against spin, but his maturity and class were evident as he battled through and also overcame painful cramp attacks. He has now scored three centuries already in the eight ODIs he has played and he boasts the ridiculous, Bradmanesque average of 104.50.

Klaasen came in at 177 for three in the 36^th over and showed intent from the outset and his glovework was also sharp.

Rabada had taken two for 16 in six excellent overs up front, but then sprained his ankle and had to leave the field, but Mulder and Andile Phehlukwayo produced tidy seam bowling as well.

Charith Asalanka threatened to chase down Sri Lanka’s revised target of 265 in 41 overs after another rain delay when they were already four down, as he struck a dangerous 77 off just 69 balls. He and Dasun Shanaka (30) added 64 for the fifth wicket and Chamika Karunatne caused problems as well with his 36 off 23 deliveries before he was outfoxed by Maharaj.

The Proteas enter an ODI series in Sri Lanka on Thursday and once again there is a mass of expectation on their shoulders as they look to not only win on the field but somehow also win over the hearts of the many people who are deeply dismayed by what has been going on in South African cricket lately.

One can sympathise with captain Temba Bavuma as he looks to juggle all these demands that range from socio-economic issues that plague the country as a whole to how to deal with turning pitches on the subcontinent.

South Africa’s struggles with that are well-known and they have not won an ODI series since beating Australia 18 months ago, which means they are currently outside the top eight in the race to pre-qualify for the next World Cup. And they have not won an ODI series overseas in nearly three years – again it was Australia who succumbed to the Proteas, in November 2018.

“It seems these days whenever we play there’s always something brought up that we haven’t done,” Bavuma lamented on Wednesday. “Our main aim is to win series, to try and accumulate as many points as we can to qualify for the 50-over World Cup, and we are here in foreign conditions and we don’t focus on the past, but we do learn from it. I’ve only been in this role for two series – against Pakistan and the Ireland series that was affected by the weather.

“We still have a lot to overcome as a team, there’s the stuff going on behind closed doors, but our responsibility is to make sure that what we do on the field meets a certain standard. Winning is where our minds are at and our conversations are largely centred around how we can play our best cricket. We don’t need to get involved in external matters,” Bavuma said.

The Proteas are also missing key players in Quinton de Kock, David Miller and Lungi Ngidi. The absence of De Kock means either Aiden Markram or Reeza Hendricks will open the batting with Janneman Malan, with Heinrich Klaasen or Kyle Verreynne taking the gloves; both could play as they did in South Africa’s last ODI, a thumping 70-run win over Ireland that levelled the series.

But there are also empty chairs to be filled in the management room with bowling coach Charl Langeveldt not able to travel due to Covid quarantine and assistant coach Enoch Nkwe having resigned.

“It’s our first tour without Enoch and it’s quite a big loss, especially on the tactical and strategic side. He was a good sounding board for me, someone I could test my ideas with, and we had experience of working together at domestic level. But life goes on and there’s not much we can do about it. As far as his reasons go, as a team we have not heard from Enoch himself.

“There has been a lot of speculation, but I’m sure he’s rooting for us. For it to be said there was something wrong with our team culture and environment, makes me feel … I haven’t had the opportunity for a formal discussion with him, so I would like to sit down and unpack it all with him, hear from him first. I will take what he says on board and discuss it amongst the team,” Bavuma said.

Dale Steyn not only always played his cricket with immense passion and skill, but with enormous soul, and now that the life of a professional cricketer is no longer fun for him, one of the greatest fast bowlers that ever played the game announced his retirement from all formats on Tuesday.

Steyn’s Test record ranks amongst the greatest from any era. In 93 Tests, South Africa’s leading wicket-taker claimed 439 wickets an average of just 22.95 and a strike-rate of 42.30.

It is that strike-rate and his record away from home (164 wickets in 37 Tests at 24.23) that sets him apart. Of the 79 bowlers who have taken 200 Test wickets, only compatriot Kagiso Rabada (41.20) has a better strike-rate. And no other fast bowler has made as big an impact on the subcontinent, Steyn taking 92 wickets in 22 matches there at an average of 24.11.

“It feels like I actually retired a long time ago. Not playing regularly, you lose the passion. You train for six weeks and sit in quarantine for 10 days to play in a tournament that gets cancelled a week later. There’s no fun in travelling anymore and I think half the reason I did so well overseas was because I enjoyed travelling, meeting people, enjoying different places and learning.

“Fitness-wise I have no issues, no niggles, so I am able to play still, I just don’t want to in that sort of environment that is now the ‘new normal’. The IPL last year wasn’t great with not one person in the crowd, and then I went to a couple of other T20 leagues – Sri Lanka was very difficult and Pakistan was the same thing; bubbles get breached and you have to leave,” Steyn told The Citizen on Tuesday.

While the 38-year-old admitted that he will miss the game too much to stay away for too long, for now he is looking forward to the freedom to enjoy all the outdoors and fun pursuits he enjoys.

“I will still be involved somewhere because cricket is all I know. I have skills to offer that I believe can help a good player become great, I just need to learn how to do that. But for now I might just let cricket slide a bit, I want to enjoy life for a while. As a player, I felt my hands were tied – I couldn’t just go skydiving because it wasn’t allowed by my contract.

“Covid has taken away a lot, but I’m looking forward to having the freedom every normal person has. I’ve always been with team-mates since I was 13/14 years old and I will miss that. But I’ve still got my dogs!” Steyn said.