Ken Borland

Only a wee bit more than 40 overs were able to be played in the first ODI against Ireland in Dublin on Sunday, but in that time there were suggestions that South Africa still have a little problem in terms of death bowling.

The Proteas had won the toss and sent Ireland in to bat under gloomy, overcast skies that had already caused the start to be delayed by 45 minutes.

When Ireland had reached 195 for four after 40.2 overs, the rain returned and became a persistent drizzle, forcing the umpires to call the match off an hour-and-a-half later.

That had been the second time rain had forced the players off the field because Ireland’s innings was first interrupted on 145 for two after 35 overs. When they returned, the match had been reduced to 43 overs a side and the home side went on the thrash.

The last 5.2 overs that the Proteas bowled were hammered for 50 runs, a bit on the expensive side and cause for some thought by the coaching staff.

But overall it had been a solid bowling performance by the Proteas. Kagiso Rabada and Lungi Ngidi were both impressively accurate up front and Ireland only scored 28 runs in the first 10 overs.

But the South Africans were unable to buy a wicket until the end of the 13th over when Paul Stirling (13) sliced an attempted pull off Andile Phehlukwayo into the covers.

William Porterfield (63 off 87) and captain Andy Balbirnie (65 off 79) then laid a solid platform for the innings with their second-wicket stand of 87 in 17.2 overs.

Porterfield fell trying to reverse-sweep Tabraiz Shamsi and Rabada (8.2-2-43-2) then picked up two wickets when the slog was on towards the end of the innings.

Harry Tector (25) and Mark Adair (16*) gathered quick runs with good cameos at the death.

The rainy weather and the grassy fields of Ireland are obviously not going to be very conducive to spin-bowling, but Tabraiz Shamsi said on Friday that he is content to just play a supporting role in the Proteas’ ODI series that starts on Sunday, following his heroics in the West Indies.

Shamsi was deservedly named player of the series as South Africa beat a powerful West Indies side 3-2 in their T20 rubber, conceding just 80 runs in the 20 overs he bowled and taking seven wickets in an incredible display that fully justified his ranking as the No. 1 bowler in the shortest format.

The top six ODI wicket-takers at Malahide are all pace bowlers.

“There’s a definite change in the weather from the Caribbean to here, it’s quite gloomy and cold, and there’s definitely a lot in it for the fast bowlers. The pitch in training has been offering seam movement, so that’s a change from Grenada, and it’s going to be nice to see them offload.

“My preparation doesn’t really change, but maybe I’ll have more of a minimal role in this series and I’m comfortable with that. It’s not just about me taking wickets all the time, I have to be able to adjust and sometimes just hold the game. I see that differently now that I am older and more mature. If I don’t take wickets then it doesn’t mean I haven’t been successful,” Shamsi said from Dublin.

While a series against Ireland, who South Africa have beaten in all five of their previous ODIs (the last two by margins of greater than 200 runs) and who are ranked 12^th in the world, may seem like a one-sided exercise to some, the fact that every ODI now counts towards World Cup qualification ensures the integrity of these sort of match-ups and the hunger of the Proteas to continue the improved form they showed in the West Indies should lead to a good contest.

“It’s been a while since we played ODI cricket, but the World Cup is in a couple of years and the important thing is the points we need to qualify. So you have to try and win as many games as possible. What we have done in the West Indies is now gone and it’s no secret that we have not had much success in the recent past, we are on a good roll now and we want to keep that.

“The quality is there in our team, we are just a bit inexperienced and need more games together. And we don’t like losing plus we know people back home don’t like watching us lose, so we will be pushing hard and trying everything in our power to keep winning. That’s the only way to build confidence and we just ask for patience while we do that,” Shamsi said.

Rassie van der Dussen believes that the successful style of T20 cricket the Proteas played in the West Indies can be transferred and honed in their three-match ODI series against Ireland that starts at Malahide in Dublin on Sunday.

The focus of the South African team, and all other international outfits, is currently on the T20 World Cup to be played in the UAE in October. But Van der Dussen said on Thursday that there are aspects of the ODI game that will help their preparation for the shortest format as well.

“For the batsmen, in 50-over cricket you get time in the middle which you don’t always get in T20, especially for those of us in the middle-order. Because you’ve got more time, you’ve got bigger scope to identify where your game is at and you can get yourself in properly. So ODI cricket is a good reference point and a real opportunity to nail down your plans.

“The last five overs of the innings was probably one area we weren’t too happy with against the West Indies and what we do in this series against Ireland is definitely transferable and we have a few more balls to get used to the conditions in 50-over cricket. In T20 cricket, sometimes you only have 10 balls to make an impact, hit some boundaries, and that’s where we came up short,” Van der Dussen said.

For the 32-year-old Van der Dussen, the job becomes harder because he tends to bob up and down the batting order, meaning his role changes from innings to innings.

“In the West Indies I came in a bit later than usual, but you have to be adaptable and bring the right skills on the day. I know where I came up short and I’ll be trying to make sure I don’t make the same mistakes again in this series. I wouldn’t say it’s frustrating only facing 10 balls because the reality is if you’re coming in No. 4 or 5 and there are only 10 balls left then it means the top three have done their job.

“So that’s good for the team. Sometimes you lose early wickets and then you need to grab the opportunity to bat for a long time and do the job of a top-order batsman. There are six or seven guys who need to get the runs for the team and it doesn’t matter who gets them,” Van der Dussen said.

The second World Cup, hosted by England, Scotland, Wales, Ireland and France, was a more competitive affair which featured a qualifying system for the first time and concluded in a scrappy final won by Australia, who beat England 12-6 at Twickenham.

That 1991 Australian team had the makings of a top-class outfit, featuring a powerhouse backline including Nick Farr-Jones, Michael Lynagh, Tim Horan, Jason Little and David Campese and with future legends such as John Eales, Ewen McKenzie and Phil Kearns in the pack.

England were a quality team themselves with players like Will Carling, Jeremy Guscott, Rory Underwood and Rob Andrew in the backs and a tremendous pack spearheaded by the front row of Jeff Probyn, Brian Moore and Jason Leonard, but they made a fatal mistake in the final by switching from a forward-orientated style of play to a running game which suited the Wallabies down to the ground.

Australia made a slow start to the tournament, with their biggest test in Pool 3 coming from debutants Western Samoa, one of the qualifiers. The Wallabies edged them out 9-3 in Pontypool, but the islanders pulled off a sensational 16-13 win over Wales at Cardiff Arms Park to also progress to the quarterfinals. The incredible upset prompted the quip that Wales were lucky they were only playing against the western half of Samoa!

Zimbabwe, featuring future Springbok prop Adrian Garvey, who scored two tries against Scotland, were Africa’s representatives with South Africa still in isolation. They were in Pool 2, which the unbeaten Scots topped to go through to the quarterfinals with fellow Celts Ireland.

Reigning champions New Zealand were with England in Pool 1 and beat them 18-12 in the tournament’s opening game at Twickenham, but the Red Rose systematically crushed Italy and the United States to ensure they reached the knockout stages.

France topped Pool 4 as expected, but Canada upset the applecart by beating Fiji 13-3 in Bayonne to also go through. The mercurial Fijians fell apart thereafter, also losing to Romania to prop up the pool.

Campese was the focal point of the quarterfinals as he scored two brilliant tries to put Australia ahead against Ireland, but then his major error led to Gordon Hamilton racing away for a try that gave the hosts an 18-15 lead in Dublin as the match drew to a close.

But he made up for it by making the break that led to Lynagh finishing the last-gasp try that kept the Wallabies alive.

Campese would score again in Australia’s 16-6 win over New Zealand in the semi-finals and, although he had a quiet final, he arguably won them the game because he taunted the English style of play to such an extent that they changed it for the showpiece game!

England beat France 19-10 and Scotland ended the Samoan dream 28-6 to set up the other semi-final.

England scraped home 9-6 in Edinburgh, Scottish fullback Gavin Hastings missing a penalty from in front of the poles, which he subsequently said he should not have taken having just been smashed by Mike Skinner in a tackle.

As rugby rapidly hurtled towards professionalism, the second World Cup was seen as a success, with increased attendance and viewers, and was viewed as a major global sporting event for the first time. Of course, the absence of the Springboks meant there was still debate for at least another year as to who the best side in the world really were.