Ken Borland

Fast bowler Duanne Olivier is starring in four-day domestic cricket, back in South Africa for the first time since February 2019, when he took four wickets in the Proteas’ infamous second Test loss to Sri Lanka in Port Elizabeth, when the tiny island nation became the first subcontinental team to win a Test series here.

He then added to the sense of shock in South African cricket at the time by taking a Kolpak contract to play in English county cricket for Yorkshire. Olivier did play in the Mzansi Super League for the Jozi Stars at the end of 2019, but with the Kolpak door now closed, the 29-year-old should be back in the local game permanently.

Olivier was named in a powerful four-man Central Gauteng Lions pace attack on Friday in their CSA Four-Day Domestic Series match against the North-West Dragons at the Wanderers, and was in fine form, taking four for 50 in 14.2 overs. And it wasn’t just all fire and brimstone either, there were clearly intelligent plans at play too.

As a fiery strike bowler, Olivier is always expected to take wickets and be the spearhead of a successful team. Certainly in English county cricket, he will be looked to by Yorkshire as the overseas pro who will win them matches and get them into contention for silverware.

Despite fairly modest returns of 75 wickets in 25 first-class games for Yorkshire at an average of 32.42, Olivier has been signed as an overseas pro through to the end of next season.

The owner of an excellent Test record of 48 wickets in 10 matches at 19.25 will have the same level of expectation from the Lions, especially since their home base of the Wanderers is ideally suited to his high-energy, high-impact bowling that can drag life out of most pitches.

Olivier said he is loving the pressure that is on him to perform.

“I always feel pressure because I am always trying to do well for the team. I actually enjoy it, it’s a part of the game and it helps a lot that in the UK, you are also always under pressure,” Olivier said on the eve of his Lions debut.

“This is a different structure now in South African cricket, which means there is different pressure, and I will embrace that. Every year is a challenge, with different ups and downs, and every year I just understand my game a bit better.

“Obviously cricket is performance-based and if you take wickets then it looks like you’re making an impact, but for me it’s about the process and how well I have bowled.

“It’s always nice in Johannesburg because it’s more suited to fast bowling. But I will just try to keep it as simple as possible. What I’ve achieved before is irrelevant, it’s three or four years since I last played at the Wanderers, and it’s a fresh challenge,” Olivier said.

Key battles in the second Rugby Championship Test between the Springboks & Argentina in PE on Saturday

The midfield battle

While Argentina coach Mario Ledesma has made eight changes to his starting line-up, the midfield of Jeronimo de la Fuente and Santiago Chocobares are not the ones footing the blame for last weekend’s loss as they have been retained. The Pumas dropped the ball – both literally and figuratively – a few times on attack in that 32-12 defeat and they will be under even more pressure to stick to their game-plan on Saturday as they come up against Damian de Allende and Lukhanyo Am. That duo were a major part of the success against the British and Irish Lions and, after a week’s break, they are bound to pitch up at their best at Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium.

The loose trios

Springbok eighthman Jasper Wiese will be looking for an encore after his man of the match display last weekend, and this time he has the indefatigable Franco Mostert and a fully fit Siya Kolisi (he was battling a stomach bug in the first game) alongside him. One can bet good money though that there will be a fiery response from the Argentina loose trio after they were so badly outplayed last weekend. Guido Petti, a tough, physical, powerful and experienced player has moved from lock to join Pablo Matera and Rodrigo Bruni in the back row.

Cheslin Kolbe & Makazole Mapimpi versus the defence

South Africa’s brilliant wingers have gobbled up tries quite relentlessly since being paired together. They are ruthless when it comes to spotting and exploiting the slightest opportunity. The Pumas cannot afford any signs of weakness out wide and they need to keep the defensive door firmly shut against the Springboks’ lethal marauders.

Trevor Nyakane versus Francisco Gomez Kodela

The grinning Limpopo powerhouse starts at loosehead prop at Saturday and watching him dismantle Argentina’s 36-year-old tighthead prop Francisco Gomez Kodela at the first scrum will be just the thing to get the gees going around the braai. Nyakane had the measure of the best scrummagers the British and Irish Lions could throw at him and South Africa’s set-piece dominance lays the platform for so much else of their pressure game. But Gomez Kodela is a very clever scrummager technically, and he will be looking to man up in his last game for Argentina before he returns to club duty with Olympique Lyon.

The great Bruce Springsteen sings about the bittersweet feelings of joy and dismay when returning to one’s roots in his 1985 hit My Home Town and Springbok assistant coach Mzwandile Stick was probably experiencing similar mixed emotions in Gqeberha (Port Elizabeth) on Friday.

Stick is back in his birthplace with the Springbok team preparing for their Rugby Championship opener against Argentina at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium on Saturday, but the build-up to the big Test match, with the home team fresh off their stirring win over the British and Irish Lions, is strangely muted. Simply because of the Covid restrictions under which sport is now played.

“To be honest, I’ve been a bit down this week because it’s the first time I’ve come to PE and not even been able to visit my family. We know how passionate supporters are here, they are big Springbok supporters. This is a very special place for me and a packed stadium on Saturday would have been nice.

“We are all very passionate about the Eastern Cape, they gave me my platform, I am who I am because of this place. And we know there is a lot of potential here and we just have to make sure we keep on looking after it. Otherwise there has not been much difference in our preparation for Argentina, we are sticking to our routine and the process has not changed,” Stick, a former IRB Sevens World Series winning captain, said on Friday.

In terms of preparation for Saturday’s Test, the new 50/22 trial law that allows a team to throw into the lineout if they kick from their own half indirectly into touch in the opposition 22, is not something they have really had time to incorporate into their game-plan.

“It was only brought in this week so we won’t be changing much. But with all the kickers in our team it does give us opportunities. Frans Steyn, for example, has a massive boot that maybe we can use. But it does not change our plan much,” Stick said.

Speaking of Steyn, the backline coach said it will be important on Saturday for the likes of the double World Cup winner and fellow seniors Elton Jantjies, Jesse Kriel and Cobus Reinach to share their experience with a new-look back three.

“The key has been getting a balance in the backline. There are guys who have been there for a while – Cobus, Elton, Frans and Jesse – they are experienced and we know they have done it before. But the back three have worked very hard. We know what Sbu Nkosi can do, he has a bit of x-factor; Aphelele Fassi is a youngster who has played well for the Sharks and had a couple of very good touches against Georgia; and Damian Willemse is starting to mature in his game, he does the basics very well.

“One of our goals is building strong depth, whenever we get the opportunity we will give some guys the chance to recover and others the chance to play. It’s going to be tough against the strongest Argentina team but I have no doubt they are up to the challenge,” Stick said.

A 136-minute 44 not out by opener Janneman Malan has kept the Cape Cobras in with a chance of victory going into the final day of their 4-Day Domestic Series match against the Warriors at St George’s Park in Port Elizabeth on Tuesday.

Malan’s resolute innings lifted the Cobras from a shaky 52 for three as, with wicketkeeper Kyle Verreynne showing the same determination in batting out 41 balls for six not out, they reached stumps on 82 for three. The visitors therefore need another 183 runs on the last day to post their first win of the season, after the Warriors fought back strongly from a first-innings deficit of 61.

The Warriors took their overnight score of 91 for two to 325 all out, thanks to Rudi Second notching his second century in successive matches, a classy 114 off 154 deliveries with 18 fours.

His third-wicket stand of 167 with captain Yaseen Vallie (57) was the foundation of the Warriors’ comeback. Lesiba Ngoepe chipped in with a quickfire 30 and Sinethemba Qeshile (30*) and Glenton Stuurman (22) then added 42 important runs for the ninth wicket just to ensure the challenge was stiff for the Cobras batsmen in the final innings.

The target of 265 became even more daunting when Mthiwekhaya Nabe removed Zubayr Hamza (19) and Tony de Zorzi (0) with successive deliveries.

Calvin Savage was earlier the best of the Cobras bowlers with four for 81 in 22 overs.

Rassie van der Dussen’s tenacious 107 not out was the only thing standing between the Knights and a walk in the park to victory over the Imperial Lions in their match in Bloemfontein.

But Van der Dussen has already been dismissed in the Lions’ follow-on innings, caught in the slips off Duan Jansen for 14 on the last ball before rain stopped play, the Lions struggling to stumps on 43 for two, still 167 runs behind.

The Lions began the third day well-placed on 124 for two, but spinner Shaun von Berg caused a major collapse when he trapped Wesley Marshall lbw for 38.

With only Van der Dussen providing much resistance, the Lions lost their last seven wickets for 63 runs as Von Berg took five for 93 in 28 overs in a fine display of leg-spin bowling.

Von Berg dismissed Marshall for 2 in the follow-on innings and the in-form Dominic Hendricks (27*) will have to bat long for the Lions on the final day.