There is clearly plenty of work still to do for South Africa in T20 cricket as they slumped to a 29-run defeat at the hands of Zimbabwe in their Pran RFL Triangular Series match at Harare Sports Club on Wednesday.

 – http://www.supersport.com/cricket/sa-team/news/120620/Plenty_of_work_to_do_for_SA

South Africa’s back-up attack is a worry as they conceded 176 for four after Zimbabwe chose to bat first; and the home attack then sent out a clear warning that spinners and bowlers who take the pace off are still a major threat for the South African batsmen as they bowled them out for 147.

Richard Levi had given South Africa a solid start with his 40 off 28 balls, but his soft dismissal, pulling off-spinner Prosper Utseya to cow-corner, and the decision to move Justin Ontong (4) and Dane Vilas (0) up the order proved costly as the tourists slumped from 73 for one after eight overs to 91 for five just four overs later.

Colin Ingram, who was dropped first ball by Vusi Sibanda, scored a defiant 48 off 39 balls, but when Sibanda caught him at deep mid-off off the bowling of the superb Christopher Mpofu in the 18th over, it was all over for South Africa.

Hashim Amla (11) still looked in prime form as he collected two boundaries off Kyle Jarvis in the second over, but in the next over, he tried to drive Mpofu on the up and could only sky a catch into the hands of the back-pedalling Hamilton Masakadza.

Mpofu had Ingram dropped at square-leg by Sibanda in the fifth over but took a break with excellent figures of one for 14 in three overs.

But Jarvis continued to leak runs at the other end, going for 28 in two, and South Africa were in charge until the introduction of spinners Graeme Cremer and Prosper Utseya.

Utseya removed Levi and Cremer then heaped more pressure on the South Africans by dismissing Ontong – off a cramped drive – and Vilas, who tried to cut a big-turning googly and chopped on, with successive deliveries in the 10th over.

Cremer struck again in his next over with the even bigger scalp of JP Duminy (6). The left-hander also fell to the googly, which Cremer almost turns more than his stock leg-break, and was so far down the pitch that wicketkeeper Brendan Taylor could afford three attempts to complete the stumping!

Ingram and Albie Morkel found ways to score off Cremer, though, as they gave South Africa a chance, taking 15 runs off the leg-spinner in the 14th over, to leave the visitors needing 63 off six overs to win.

Morkel had hit Cremer a long way for six but then found a frustrating way to get out as he bottom-edged a cut at a very wide delivery from Richard Muzhange and was caught behind for 10.

Muzhange was brilliant at the death, taking two for 16 in three overs, but no one bowled better than Mpofu, who finished with three for 20, removing the dangerous Robin Peterson (13) and Ingram in the 18th over.

Cremer finished with three for 29 and Utseya one for 27 in four overs as Zimbabwe pulled off one of their most famous victories.

Half-centuries by both opening batsmen had been the key feature as Zimbabwe posted a fine 176 for four.

South Africa again produced a mediocre bowling display and a messy performance in the field and will have to chase down a testing target on a pitch that is offering turn and grip for the slower balls.

Zimbabwe won the toss and batted and openers Sibanda and Masakadza immediately had the South African bowlers under pressure as they breezed to 38 without loss in five overs.

It just got worse for the visitors as Sibanda and Masakadza reached 50 in the seventh over and raised their century partnership after just 12 overs.

Perhaps one shouldn’t expect miracles just a day after their disappointing first match against Bangladesh, but the South African bowlers once again failed to build pressure, bowling towards the leg-side too often and not stacking up dot balls.

Sibanda and Masakadza eventually added 114 for the first wicket before Masakadza tried to slog-sweep left-arm spinner Peterson, who held the ball back and was rewarded with a catch at cow-corner.

Masakadza, powerful and lethal on the leg side, scored 55 off 39 balls, with five fours and a six.

Sibanda enjoyed himself until the 16th over, hammering four fours and two sixes in his 58 off 50 balls before Parnell had him caught at deep backward point in the 16th over.

The over was an eventful one, also featuring a dropped catch on the boundary by Levi, a four and another wicket when Elton Chigumbura mistimed a pull off the left-arm seamer to be caught off the first ball he faced.

Captain Taylor, dropped by Ontong on the midwicket boundary off Morkel on six, was the star of the closing overs, joining in on the feast as he bashed three fours and two sixes in lashing 38 off 21 balls. His innings ensured Zimbabwe posted a testing target after a very promising start.

Taylor fell to the first ball of the final over when he somehow managed to glove what should have been a free hit at a wretched short ball down leg from Marchant de Lange to wicketkeeper Dane Vilas, who took a good catch diving forward.

Peterson enjoyed bowling on a pitch that suited him, finishing with one for 29 in his four overs, while Morkel (3-0-26-0) and De Lange, in a final over that cost just seven runs, did well when called upon to bowl at the most inconvenient times.

Cricket South Africa (CSA) have had their peculiar financial arrangements exposed during the Nicholson Inquiry, but their ability to make sound cricketing decisions has now been questioned by one of the most respected players in the country.

Boeta Dippenaar retires from cricket today and, even though his feet may no longer move as assuredly as he would like, his brain remains as sharp as ever and is one of the reasons he is the president of the South African Cricketers’ Association.

Speaking in his personal capacity, Dippenaar told City Press he was concerned by CSA’s plans to include 12 teams in the franchise system instead of the current six. Instead of lifting the overall quality of domestic cricket, Dippenaar says this will weaken the game in South Africa and, as a consequence, weaken the national team.

“The domestic structure is incredibly important for the national team, but it will only reflect four or five years later.

“There are players missing out on franchise cricket and how do we make sure that those good enough to play get the opportunity? “I have no doubt that there’s place for an eighth team, but there’s no way there are enough high-quality players for 12 teams in the elite system,” Dippenaar said.

It will be up to the CSA board to vote on the 12-team suggestion. Herein lies the problem: the board comprises 11 provinces, all acting in their own narrow interests.

“If eight teams is correct, how do we get there? Griquas won’t allow North-West to have a franchise if they don’t have one and Boland won’t allow Border to have one if they don’t. It will require turkeys voting for Christmas,” Dippenaar said.

It is a problem that Australian cricket and, right now, the International Cricket Council (ICC), have wrestled with.

“When the franchise system came in here, CSA said it was what Australia were doing, but a lot of aspects were left out. We must remember that Australia has a population of about 22 million, while we have 50 million people.

“The Lord Woolf report was commissioned by the ICC and it clearly outlines that cricket’s governance is not in favour of the game but is rather a political structure.

“It’s no longer an amateur game but we have clubs electing people to run it. Does that serve the interests of the game? Anyone who can put two-and-two together can see that it doesn’t,” Dippenaar said.

For an illustration of the strength of cricket played outside the six franchises, take the example of Dippenaar’s Chevrolet Knights team-mate, Aubrey Swanepoel: He is the leading run-scorer in the CSA Provincial Challenge with 721 at an average of 72.10. But in his first three SuperSport Series innings, he managed just five runs.

Much as the visitors to that Bethlehem stable 2 000 years ago looked to the baby lying in a manger for miraculous deeds, it is new coach Gary Kirsten who South African cricket fans are expecting to transform their team from nearly-men into ruthless dominators.

2011 brought yet another year of World Cup heartbreak and it is Kirsten, and AB de Villiers, who was named as the new limited-overs captain after the tournament, who will be picking up the cudgels and trying to give 2012’s story a very different, happy ending.

South Africa’s recent test record bears comparison to their ODI shortcomings because they have also just failed to nail down the ultimate prize – the number one ranking – despite fielding some of the greatest players in the game and periodically producing performances of sheer class.

An inability to ruthlessly dispatch opposition who are on the back foot stands in South Africa’s way in both formats.

MENTAL FRAGILITY

In the World Cup, the bowlers – thought to be the weak link before the tournament – could not be accused of not fulfilling their side of the deal as they bowled out all their opposition in the six group matches and then restricted New Zealand to 221 for eight in the quarterfinal.

But the mental fragility of the batsmen was once again to the fore as they unravelled in the face of unsavoury Kiwi aggression, the same old numb feeling of devastation returning to their Dhaka changeroom, as it had before in Sydney, Karachi, Edgbaston, Kingsmead and Beausejour.

That World Cup failure is South African cricket’s biggest wound is obvious and a whole new generation of the infected was launched in Dhaka in March. It is equally as obvious that as soon as Kirsten had steered India to the title – chasing down an imposing 275 in the final against Sri Lanka – that Cricket South Africa would be desperate for their former opening batsman to take over the reins of the Proteas.

The short visit of Australia at the start of the 2011/12 season only served to ram home the point, however, that South Africa’s batsmen often falter at the most critical times.

After the incredible victory at Newlands, where Australia were bowled out for a scarcely-believable 47, the visitors, a pale shadow of their former selves, arrived at the Wanderers ripe for the killing. South Africa won an important toss and batted first in perfect conditions, with Australia then falling a bowler short when Shane Watson limped off injured.

But instead of bludgeoning the weakened Australian attack, South Africa were bowled out in a day for 266. And they did something similar in the second innings too, slipping from 237 for three to 339 all out.

The beleagured Brad Haddin and Mitchell Johnson engineered a series-levelling two-wicket victory and South Africa had still not won a series at home in four attempts, dating back to 2008/9.

Sri Lanka followed Australia to these shores and were blown away by an innings on a grassy Centurion pitch, and the nation now waits with bated breath for the Proteas to finish the job in Durban over the last few days of the year and finally get rid of that unwanted home series statistic.

TALL TREES

South Africa still boast some of the tallest trees in world cricket’s forest though.

Jacques Kallis was the number one ranked batsman in the world after his twin centuries against India at Newlands at the start of the year and has a firm hold on test cricket’s number one all-rounder ranking.

Hashim Amla was the fastest ever to 2 000 ODI runs early in the year, while Dale Steyn was unwavering in living up to his status as the best bowler in the world.

Graeme Smith was unfairly demonised after the World Cup – a public lynching in South Africa was not going to change anything – and 2011 was not his greatest year. But, having relinquished the limited-overs captaincy, the left-hander made another of his characteristic fourth-innings centuries to win the first test against Australia at Newlands.

Mark Boucher was another who did not go quietly, making a career-saving half-century against Sri Lanka at Centurion, where he also kept wicket superbly. AB de Villiers is not letting his new responsibilities affect his batting, and his 99 against Sri Lanka at Centurion was one of the best innings of his career.

NEW STARS

New stars were also born.

Faf du Plessis impressed at the World Cup, while left-arm seamer Lonwabo Tsotsobe bowled with penetration and accuracy in limited-overs matches.

Leg-spinner Imran Tahir burst on to the scene at the World Cup as South Africa defied convention and went into several games with three spinners. Slow left-armer Robin Peterson and off-spinner Johan Botha were the others and they also proved their worth as all-round cricketers.

Jacques Rudolph forced his way back into the test team as Smith’s opening partner, but battled to make several good starts really count.

But the newcomer of the year was undoubtedly Vernon Philander.

Trying him out at Newlands in the first test against Australia, after years of domestic excellence, might just prove to a watershed for South African cricket.

Philander claimed 14 wickets in the two tests against Australia – including five for 15 in the 47 all out innings – to win the man of the series award and then 10 to skittle Sri Lanka at Centurion and win the man of the match award.

Philander’s adherence to the basics of line-and-length and hitting the seam are his greatest strengths; perhaps South Africa will fulfil their considerable potential when they discover a way to do the simple things well as a team, day in, day out.

http://www.supersport.com/cricket/sa-team/news/111220/More_Protea_heartbreak_in_2011