Ken Borland

SOUTH Africa’s Test squad were not too far from perfection in beating England and securing the number one ranking a couple of months ago, so it is little surprise there have been only minor changes to the party for their trip to Australia at the end of the month.

While selection convener Andrew Hudson is totally content with the starting 11, he said in Johannesburg on Wednesday that “we have just tweaked our reserve strength slightly to suit expected conditions and the tactical situation”.

Uncapped Rory Kleinveldt and Faf du Plessis have been chosen as the prime bowling and batting cover, while Thami Tsolekile will again tour as a reserve wicketkeeper.

Barring a major loss of form or injury, Tsolekile is probably the most likely to play because of concern about the ability of AB de Villiers’ admittedly wonderfully athletic body to handle the strain of both keeping wicket and being a key batsman. Hudson told Business Day that a final decision on the wicketkeeping berth would need to be made but this was unlikely to happen before the Australian tour.

“We need a long-term solution to the wicketkeeping berth and it’s certainly on the selectors’ minds. We will need to apply ourselves to questions like, is AB keen and able to do the job or do we need to start grooming a new incumbent?

“But we’ll maybe only do that after the tour, it will be a hot topic to talk about.

“AB keeping wicket in England gave us the edge in that series with a recognised batsman at No7 but we will go to Australia with an open mind and be cognisant of his fitness and the demands of keeping affecting his batting,” Hudson said.

The selectors have clearly lost patience with Lonwabo Tsotsobe’s erratic form this year and he will have some much-needed game time with the KwaZulu-Natal Dolphins, having sat on the Proteas’ bench for several months.

Hudson said the selectors believed Kleinveldt could have the same dramatic effect Vernon Philander had when he was called up from the same Cape Cobras side a year ago.

“In Australian conditions, we believe Rory will get nice movement and he hits the deck.

“He’s been just behind Vernon in the overall averages in recent years, he’s been bowling with good pace for the South Africa A side.

“He’s done his time, he’s bowled well in four-day cricket and performed for a number of years and we believe he could be similar to Vernon in the way he came through. Plus he’s useful as a batsman down the order, just adding to the package,” Hudson said.

Du Plessis lost confidence on the England tour and during the ICC World Twenty20, but appeared to be on the comeback trail in his last innings when he blazed 65 off 38 balls against India.

He will be on standby to cover any middle-order holes, with Jacques Rudolph on hand to fill in at the top of the order if necessary.

Du Plessis averaged 85.57 in last season’s SuperSport Series, second only to Hashim Amla (90.50), and there was a big gap between him and the likes of Alviro Petersen (62.76), Justin Ontong (59.81), Tsolekile (59.50) and Colin Ingram (57.88).

Petersen, who broke his hand fielding for the Highveld Lions in their opening match of the season, is expected to be fit to play in time for the first Test starting in Brisbane on November 9.

“By all accounts he’ll be fine, I’ve had no red flags from the medical committee,” Hudson said.

PROTEAS SQUAD

Graeme Smith, Alviro Petersen, Hashim Amla, Jacques Kallis, AB de Villiers, Jacques Rudolph, JP Duminy, Vernon Philander, Dale Steyn, Morne Morkel, Imran Tahir, Thami Tsolekile, Rory Kleinveldt, Faf du Plessis, Robin Peterson.

http://www.bdlive.co.za/sport/cricket/2012/10/11/minor-changes-to-south-africa-squad-for-australia-tour

England, the defending champions, made the ideal start to their ICC World T20 campaign when they hammered Afghanistan by 116 runs in their opening game at the Premadasa Stadium in Colombo on Friday.

: http://www.supersport.com/cricket/article.aspx?id=1592431

After losing the toss and being sent in to bat, England rode on the back of Luke Wright’s fiery 99 not out off just 55 balls to post 196 for five, the highest score of the tournament thus far.

Afghanistan were in serious danger of making the lowest ever score in T20 internationals when they crashed to 26 for eight in reply, but Gulbodin Naib restored the pride of the gutsy minnows and entertained the sparse crowd as he belted 44 off 32 balls to lift Afghanistan to 80 all out.

Wright batted with tremendous power to batter eight fours and six sixes, leading the charge as England blazed 122 runs in the last 10 overs to surge to a massive total.

The pace of Shapoor Zadran caused England some early troubles, and he claimed the wicket of Craig Kieswetter, playing the ball onto his own stumps, for a duck to end the first over with a wicket-maiden.

But Wright and Alex Hales made sure England made full use of the last two overs of the powerplay, smashing 37 runs from them and England were 52 for one after six overs.

Even though England lost the wicket of Hales, for 31 off 27 balls, in the most unfortunate of ways as Karim Sadiq deflected Wright’s straight drive onto the non-striker’s stumps, it was obvious England were well set for a big total with Wright going strongly at the halfway mark on 38 not out off 26 balls and the world No 1 on 74 for two.

Wright hit the off-spin of Mohammad Nabi for a six and two fours in the 16th over, Eoin Morgan also contributing a six as 22 runs came from the over.

Nabi had bowled his first two overs for 10 runs but finished with none for 46 in his four-over stint.

Wright’s marvellous ball-striking reached its peak in the penultimate over as he smashed the last three balls of Izatullah Dawlatzai’s over for six. The unfortunate seamer conceded 56 runs in three overs, the most expensive three-over spell in T20 international history.

Dawlatzai did, however, claim the wickets of Morgan, for 27 off 23 balls, and Jos Buttler, for 15 off seven.

There was also a useful cameo from Jonny Bairstow, who hit his first ball for six and ended with 12 off five balls.

Considering the carnage, Dawlat Zadran’s figures of one for 22 in four overs were remarkable and he prevented Wright from notching England’s first T20 international century by restricting him to just a couple of singles and two runs to midwicket off the last ball of the over.

England’s display with the ball was amazing as they reduced Afghanistan to 22 for five inside six overs.

Captain Stuart Broad claimed two early wickets and there was the run-out of Karim Sadiq for five as well, before the spinners, Samit Patel (3-0-6-2) and Graeme Swann (4-2-22-2), chipped in to reduce Afghanistan to a catastrophic 26 for eight after nine overs.

Gulbodin took it upon himself to save Afghanistan from unwanted history as he belted five fours and three sixes, but the yawning gap between the plucky good-news story of the competition and the defending champions was only too obvious.

South Africa were on track to defend their mediocre score when rain washed out the second T20 international against England at Old Trafford in Manchester on Monday.

 – http://www.supersport.com/cricket/sa-team/news/120910/Rain_ruins_SAs_victory_chances

South Africa had their banker, Hashim Amla, to thank as his 47 not out lifted them to 77 for five in their nine overs. England were in the fifth over of their chase, and were already two down with just 29 runs on the board, when the rain intensified to such an extent that the umpires had to abandon play.

The visitors were asked to bat first after losing the toss and Amla, opening the batting, adapted straight away to the shortest format of the game.

Rain as soon as the players were in place caused a two-and-a-half hour delay and reduced the match to nine overs a side, and there was some surprise that Amla still opened the batting. But thank goodness he did as there was a steady procession of batsmen coming in and going straight out at the other end.

Richard Levi (0), AB de Villiers (1) and Albie Morkel (3) all fell to limp attacking strokes as South Africa slipped to 37 for three in the fifth over.

Steven Finn began the rot with the first delivery, getting pace and bounce from a terrific pitch and just brushing Levi’s gloves on the way through to wicketkeeper Craig Kieswetter.

De Villiers then popped up an attempted pull off Finn in his next over, Jade Dernbach taking a juggling catch running back from deep mid-on.

Morkel fell to the medium-pace of Luke Wright, but Amla was a revelation, his incredible ability to plunder runs in any format being proven again as he hammered 47 not out off 30 balls, with seven fours.

England failed to police the area behind square on the off side well enough as Amla found the gaps there with precise placement, wonderful timing and occasionally brute force.

JP Duminy (5) and Justin Ontong (1) fell cheaply in the sixth and seventh overs, finally bringing Jacques Kallis to the crease. South Africa’s greatest batsman said what he needed to say about his demotion with the bat, scoring 13 not out off seven balls, with two fours.

Dernbach bowled two top-class overs at the death, taking one for 12, while off-spinner Graeme Swann was a handful with 1-11 in two overs. Wright bowled a valuable single over for four runs and the crucial wicket of Morkel, while Finn was a menace with the new ball, taking 2-17 in his pair of overs.

But Morne Morkel and Dale Steyn are the top new-ball pair in world cricket and they soon had England under pressure in their reply.

Morkel bowled two superb overs up front for just eight runs, while Steyn removed Kieswetter for one as the wicketkeeper/batsman tried a pull/drive on the up and could only send a catch steepling practically as high as the floodlights, Robin Peterson taking a truly fine catch, diving at the last instant, at deep mid-on.

Wright (14) top-edged a hook off Albie Morkel to his brother Morne, who took a good catch running around from fine leg, but that also proved to be the end of the match as the rain, which had been falling for the entire innings, intensified.

South Africa, more than a dozen runs ahead on Duckworth/Lewis at that stage, were just five balls away from a completed match and they deserve full marks for their outstanding bowling and fielding in slippery conditions with a sodden ball.

South Africa will go into the final T20 international of the series with a 1-0 lead after the second game against England was washed out at Old Trafford in Manchester on Monday.

5th over – WICKET – Albie Morkel strikes with his first ball, Luke Wright (14) top-edging a bouncer and Morne Morkel taking a good catch in the sodden conditions, running around from fine leg. But now the rain, which has been falling throughout the innings, is really coming down and the umpires take everyone off the field. The match is abandoned soon afterwards with No Result.

4th over – Wright comes down the wicket to off-spinner Johan Botha and is met by a high full toss, which he pulls away through square-leg for four.

2nd over – WICKET– What a catch to claim South Africa’s first wicket! Craig Kieswetter (1) is trying to pull/drive Dale Steyn on the up, but the ball goes straight up, miles in the air, sending a steepling catch to deep mid-on where Robin Peterson does brilliantly to get more or less under the ball and then dive to take the catch. Alex Hales ends the over with an extraordinary six that just shows the pace in the pitch … trying to hoick Steyn to leg, the ball flies off the outside edge and well over the third man boundary!

South Africa innings

Hashim Amla batted through the innings, launching South Africa to 77 for five in their nine overs in the second T20 international against England at Old Trafford in Manchester on Monday.

9th over – Jacques Kallis slams a full ball from Jade Dernbach through extra cover, with enough power to beat the fielder running around the boundary from long-off.

8th over – South Africa get three boundaries from the penultimate over bowled by England captain Stuart Broad. Amla gets the first two with beautifullly precise and wonderfully timed steers behind square on the off side. Kallis then top-edges a hook over where the slips would be for four and has another slice of fortune off the next delivery as a top-edge flies high to third man, but Dernbach can’t reach the catch, blocking the ball on the bounce.

7th over – WICKET – Justin Ontong (1) tries to scoop Dernbach, but it’s the bowler’s notorious back-of-the-hand slower ball, which grips and bounces, and the batsman gets the ball high on the bat, looping a catch towards short fine-leg, wicketkeeper Craig Kieswetter running across to claim it.

6th over – Amla, on 31, skips down the wicket to Graeme Swann but is not quite to the pitch and his slog-sweep goes high to wide mid-on where Eoin Morgan drops a sitter! WICKET – But the off-spinner gets his reward off the next delivery as JP Duminy (5) tries to hoist the ball down the ground, but can only sky it straight upwards. Swann runs backwards and takes a fine, one-handed tumbling catch behind his head.

5th over – WICKET – Luke Wright strikes with his second delivery as Albie Morkel (3) slices a big pull shot high to extra cover.

3rd over – WICKET – A controversial dismissal as Steven Finn has knocked over the bowler’s end stumps again but dead ball is not called. AB de Villiers (1) mistimes a pull shot to deep mid-on where Jade Dernbach is running backwards, juggles, but holds on to the catch. Amla drives up and over the covers off the next delivery and Jos Buttler is unable to prevent the boundary as he slips on the wet outfield. Two balls later, Amla steps across outside off stump and pull/flicks a short ball fine for four. Amla collects another boundary off the last ball of the powerplay as he slashes the fast bowler powerfully over backward point.

2nd over – Amla absolutely smashes Broad behind square on the off side for another ferocious boundary.

1st over – After a frustrating delay of two-and-a-quarter hours for rain, play eventually gets underway with a nine-overs-a-side-game. WICKET – And it’s an awful start for South Africa as Richard Levi is out first ball, gloving a short, lifting delivery down the leg side from Finn through to wicketkeeper Craig Kieswetter. There may be some surprise that Amla is still opening the batting, but he collects a boundary off his first ball as he clatters a cut through point.