Ken Borland

Coach Mark Boucher explained the controversial selection issues around the Proteas T20 team on Thursday and it would seem the chances are slim that rising star Kyle Verreynne will be playing in the fourth and final match against the Pakistanis at Centurion on Friday.

Verreynne was one of the stars of the last ODI against Pakistan, scoring a tremendously composed 62 off 53 balls, and has been one of the form batsmen of the summer, averaging 97.14 for the Cape Cobras in first-class cricket. But in the domestic T20 Challenge he scored 123 runs in five innings, at a strike-rate of 128.

The 23-year-old’s career strike-rate in T20 cricket is 123 and he hits an average of 1.86 fours per innings and a six in roughly every second innings. Pite van Biljon, who is probably the batsman Verreynne could replace, has a career strike-rate of 130 and an average of 1.58 fours per innings and one six per innings.

“I want to win games of cricket, that’s the focus for me, but I am one of four selectors and we choose from a squad that was selected for us. Kyle was chosen by them as the back-up wicketkeeper to Heinrich Klaasen when we spent two days discussing who was the back-up for whom. Wihan Lubbe [career SR 137] was chosen as top-three back-up. I understand Kyle was very good in the last ODI, but T20 cricket is a bit different.

“Directly after the franchise T20 competition, the computers were brought out and we considered the aggressive brand we want to play, and the collective felt that Lubbe should get an opportunity in the top-order. Kyle is growing and we believe he can still add to a couple of parts of his game and become a world-class performer in all three formats,” Boucher explained on Thursday.

The seeming imbalance of the side, with just about every bowling option under the sun being included but Andile Phehlukwayo batting at seven and not bowling has also come under scrutiny.

“Andile is playing as an all-rounder because you can’t go into a T20 with just five bowling options, that won’t work. It’s always nice to have options, we had seven in the last game, but the captain has to make the call when to use them. We bowled really well in the second T20 which is probably the reason why Andile didn’t bowl then.

“In the last game we couldn’t pick up wickets and we went to death bowling fairly early, and there are certain guys who then come into the game like Sisanda Magala and Lizaad Williams, as the captain wanted to make it difficult for Pakistan to score. But it didn’t come off,” Boucher said.

New national convenor of selectors Victor Mpitsang said on Wednesday that it was important domestic cricket and the SA A side are not seen as an inconvenience but as crucial parts of the selection system leading up to players being chosen for the Proteas.

The former ODI international’s appointment was announced by Cricket South Africa on Wednesday and the 40-year-old from Kimberley has been involved as a scout, a bowling consultant, selector and assistant coach through various levels of the pipeline, as well as being a television commentator.

Mpitsang acknowledged that his focus as convenor of selectors for the national side will have to shift somewhat from being a spotter and developer of talent into a sifter of talent to choose finished products ready to shine in international cricket. Which is where he sees the franchise game and the SA A team playing a crucial role.

“In terms of the Proteas, when guys come into the side, the reference point is how well they have done in domestic cricket; we want them to transfer that into international cricket and we want to make sure they can dominate at that level too. Some players flourish immediately with the Proteas, while others take a bit of time, but it’s all about playing cricket at the right intensity.

“That’s where the importance of the domestic system comes in; that plays a vital role in providing the cricketers. Our high performance programme is also critical. Franchise cricket and the SA A team might not totally bridge the gap to the Proteas, but it’s important that we give prospects some sort of international standard exposure, which is where the A side comes in with their tours to Australia and India, playing in those conditions,” Mpitsang told The Citizen on Wednesday.

The former pace bowler who took 245 first-class wicket at an average of 29.80 admitted that the health – or lack thereof – of the Proteas Test team was his greatest challenge going into the job.

“In terms of challenges, how the national team performs is obviously the focus. Results don’t always give a true reflection, but as a starting point, the Test team hasn’t really been great recently. We pride ourselves on being a strong Test nation and we need to turn those results around, we need to find a successful formula.

“Obviously there’s the issue of the new Test captain and for that a real leader is needed. I have some ideas, but we need to discuss that as a team and then I can see who the leaders are. I also need to understand where the Proteas system is at; I’ve been involved at all levels of our game, but I need to understand from the inside, see what the Proteas’ true culture is and then I can sit down and decide on the way to go,” Mpitsang said.

With the Lions springing a surprise by employing the battering ram services of Burger Odendaal at outside centre, forming a bulky midfield pairing with Dan Kriel, much attention was focused on the Sharks’ selection on Wednesday and who they will play in the No.12 jersey when they meet the Gauteng side in Durban on Friday night.

With captain Lukhanyo Am assured of his outside centre spot, Sharks coach Sean Everitt has gone for the stockier option at No.12, preferring Marius Louw to Jeremy Ward. Although Louw is six centimetres shorter than Ward at 1.81m, he weighs eight kilogrammes more at 94kg. Of course neither Louw nor Ward have the physical presence of the Sharks’ long-time inside centre Andre Esterhuizen, the 110kg Springbok who has joined English club Harlequins, but they both have much to add, with Ward warming the bench on Friday night.

“The competition between Marius and Jeremy is always close and we had lengthy selection discussions about it. We just felt that when Marius came on against the Bulls on SuperFan Saturday he played particularly well and brought a lot of energy. But they are both very good players and leaders, and Marius just pipped Jeremy this week.

“Playing Odendaal at 13 means the Lions will have a big centre combination with Kriel at 12. We’re expecting something different from them, they may have moved away from their DNA a bit, away from continuity and ball-in-hand rugby a bit,” Everitt said.

Facing off against Odendaal as his direct opponent and not seeing him at inside centre is also going to be different for Am, who locked horns with the new Lions signing many times while he was up the road at the Bulls.

“I’ve never gone head-to-head with Burger but I have huge respect for him having played against him several times. He will bring experience and leadership to the Lions, and probably the same game he had at the Bulls – he takes on defenders and he carries the ball pretty hard. That’s what I expect from him, the Lions have quite a big centre pairing now and we expect a physical battle,” Am said.

Springbok Sevens star Werner Kok, making his official Sharks debut, has been paired with veteran JP Pietersen as the wings, with Madosh Tambwe expected to be fit for their next Super Rugby Unlocked game, away at the Bulls after next week’s bye, and Yaw Penje, signed on a short-term contract, still assimilating into the squad.

Ox Nche forms a powerful propping partnership with World Cup winner Thomas du Toit, and Everitt said he is really happy with the improvement shown in the Sharks’ scrummaging since the start of the year.

“Their great form really started early on in Super Rugby. We had a few issues at the start of the year in our scrum and there were plenty of critics. But since then the scrum has gone from strength to strength. I thought they stood up well against the Bulls two weeks ago and Ox and Thomas carried that through to last weekend’s Green and Gold game. Ox getting one over Ruan Dreyer of the Lions last weekend will add some spice to Friday night and it will be an interesting battle,” Everitt said.

Sharks team: Manie Libbok, JP Pietersen, Lukhanyo Am, Marius Louw, Werner Kok, Curwin Bosch, Sanele Nohamba, Sikumbuzo Notshe, Phendulani Buthelezi, James Venter, Hyron Andrews, Ruben van Heerden, Thomas du Toit, Dylan Richardson, Ox Nche. Replacements – Dan Jooste, Mzamo Majola, John-Hubert Meyer, JJ van der Mescht, Mpilo Gumede, Grant Williams, Jeremy Ward, Thaakir Abrahams.

Cricket South Africa (CSA) chief executive Thabang Moroe could still obtain the selection veto powers he is seeking for himself, with the matter to be decided at the next board meeting, in Johannesburg on May 17, CSA themselves confirmed on Monday.

The Rapport newspaper reported at the weekend that Moroe’s bid to be able to veto Proteas selections was initially approved by the board last June, when president Chris Nenzani was absent as he was attending a family funeral. The report stated Nenzani then removed the proposal from the agenda at the next meeting he attended.

But a CSA spokesman told The Citizen on Monday that Moroe’s suggestion is still on the table.

“A final decision on that has not been made and it’s currently sitting with the board. A final decision on that will be made in the next board meeting. Confirmed it with Thabang now”, the spokesman said in a message.

While Moroe stated publicly two weeks ago that there would be no quotas in terms of selection for the World Cup squad that will be announced on Thursday, according to ICC rules, South Africa can make changes to their squad up until May 23.

A return to a high-ranking CSA official having a selection veto would take the organisation back to the dark days of 2008, when the veto was abolished after several controversial meddlings by then president Norman Arendse, who is now believed to be advising Moroe.

The players’ union, the South African Cricketers’ Association (SACA), were at the forefront of efforts to do away with the veto and on Monday they were still under the impression that the CSA board had shelved the idea. If Moroe is given a selection veto, it is certain to only add further strain to the relationship between the players and CSA.

“A veto used to exist but the players and SACA campaigned for a number of years to get rid of it and CSA eventually did. We opposed the veto on the basis that nobody should be involved in selection except the selectors and the selectors should not be micro-managed. Any decision to reintroduce the veto would be a concern for us collectively,” SACA chief executive Tony Irish explained to The Citizen on Monday.

What has worked well for both the Proteas and CSA over the last decade has been a system where the national selection panel must know and comply with CSA’s policies, especially those regarding transformation, and the board have recourse if they are unhappy because they appoint the selectors on an annual basis. Whether the Proteas have reached transformation targets is also judged over the whole season and across all three formats.

The Proteas players will have no trust in a selection system that allows an administrator to arbitrarily intervene in order to add whatever player he fancies at the time or remove a cricketer he does not personally like.