Ken Borland

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South African cricket enters a new era today, an uncertain time without the reassuring presence of Graeme Smith, made worse by the strong challenge to their number one Test ranking that is coming from Australia, who are playing with all the hunger and daring of the new kids on the block.

Smith cited the considerations of a young family and the wear and tear of 12 years of international cricket that forced ankle surgery last April for his decision to retire. The timing of his announcement – after the third day of the series-deciding third Test and with his team’s backs to the wall, has set off the conspiracy theorists.

But whatever the reasons for Smith’s retirement, the South African public owe him an enormous debt of gratitude. The Proteas faced an uncertain future when he took over in 2003, but Smith forged the unity, determination and appreciation for the different cultures present in the team that took them to the number one position in Test cricket. And he did all that while juggling the off-field demands of politicians, selfish administrators and a fickle public.

The statistics only tell some of the story of Smith’s immense contribution: A world record 109 Tests as captain, the most Test runs by a captain and the only batsman to score four fourth-innings centuries in wins.

His batting alone was formidable: 9265 runs at an average of 48.25 with 27 centuries; the highlights being the only South African to score four double-centuries and equalling Don Bradman’s record for the batsman with the most triple century partnerships.

But the growth of the team was mirrored by the development of Smith as a person. Handed the reins of a team in distress when he was just 22, he understandably used his natural confidence to try and stamp his mark.

The learning curve was steep, but Smith was a fast learner. The team were soon fully behind their captain, impressed by his courage in leading from the front, and the hints of arrogance that might have been present at the start of his tenure were soon replaced by a welcome thoughtfulness and honesty, especially in his dealings with the media.

The legacy and values that Smith has left in the form of world-class stars like AB de Villiers, Hashim Amla and Dale Steyn will hopefully guide the new era that the Proteas now enter.

Top-order star Jacques Rudolph will be playing his long-form cricket away from South Africa in the foreseeable future as the Titans batsman confirmed yesterday that he will not be available for the remainder of the Sunfoil Series.

Rudolph, who has scored a busload of runs for the Titans in four-day cricket – 3003 at an average of 49.22 with eight centuries and 16 half-centuries – will be returning to county cricket in a couple of months.

The left-hander will be carrying the responsibility of being Glamorgan’s overseas pro and he told The Pretoria News that his body just could not take the strain of playing cricket all year round.

“I have struggled from previous experiences playing full seasons abroad and at home. I want to arrive mentally fresh because the workload in county cricket is far more than in South Africa,” the 32-year-old said.

“That’s why I made myself unavailable from the start of the season already, committing to only five Sunfoil Series games for the Titans at the start of the season. It’s certainly not a retirement from four-day cricket, but a move to manage my mind and body more efficiently. It is very difficult to play all year.”

Before there are protestors banging on the gates of SuperSport Park, Rudolph will return to the franchise next summer and, although his focus will be on the limited-overs game, he has an open mind about playing four-day cricket too.

“I will have communications with Rob [coach Rob Walter] during the county season. I would still like to throw my name in the hat in regards to one-day cricket in South Africa. And if I don’t play four-day cricket here next season, I would like to assist the younger players where possible,” Rudolph said.

The Titans are certainly going to miss their most experienced, successful batsman as they look to recover from a poor start in this season’s Sunfoil Series, but Rudolph’s absence does allow Heino Kuhn to stamp his mark as a senior player and the likes of Francois le Clus to develop his talent.

“Jacques has been an integral part of the Titans’ successes in the past and to lose him, albeit just for the rest of this season’s four-day campaign, will obviously impact the team. But that said, it also provides an opportunity for our younger players to step up and fill the space that Jacques leaves.

“He remains an integral member of the Titans set-up and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future,” Walter said.

Albie Morkel shows his walloping power

Albie Morkel is back in the national team for the series against Australia and the ICC World T20 in Bangladesh, giving South Africa one of the most threatening batting line-ups in the competition.

The Unlimited Titans all-rounder is returning to the Green and Gold after an absence of two years, stretching back to the previous edition of the T20 world cup, in Sri Lanka.

Morkel is back to his best form, showing in the RamSlam T20 Challenge that he can still tan the hides of bowlers with 202 runs at a strike-rate of 127 and an average of 28. With the likes of AB de Villiers, JP Duminy and David Miller batting above him, South Africa can be bullish about the hitting power they will bring to Bangladesh.

“When you look at his experience, we all know what Albie has done in the past; the conditions we’ll be playing in, he’s played in the sub-continent for a long time and done well; and his domestic form, he’s a great finisher to bat behind David Miller at 7; then it was an easy decision,” selection convenor Andrew Hudson said yesterday.

Despite his international career seemingly being over, Morkel did not allow the disappointment to curdle his work ethic or ambition and he put in plenty of hard work to ensure he was one of the Titans’ stars as they claimed a couple of last-ditch victories to make the T20 Challenge playoffs, where they lost to the eventual champions, the Dolphins.

“I’m excited about being back, it’s something that wasn’t part of my plans at the start of the season. I put in the hard work, but that doesn’t always guarantee success. My mindset has changed and I’ve learnt to let go of the disappointment that comes with the territory in my role: You need to make a play and score quick runs under pressure, and the success rate of the best finishers is around 50/50. So you have to understand that you’re going to have more disappointments than successes,” Morkel told The Pretoria News.

Morkel has effectively taken the place of fellow Titans all-rounder David Wiese, who endured a wretched T20 Challenge, but there was also good news for Farhaan Behardien, who returns to the national squad after a great run in the domestic competition. The 30-year-old was the sixth highest run-scorer with 288 at a strike-rate of 129 and an average of 36.

Behardien is another man who has bounced back after being dished up disappointment by the national selectors following a dreadful ODI series in Sri Lanka in the middle of last year, when he scored just three runs in three innings.

“I was a little bit disappointed to not be in the mix against Pakistan because I felt I still had something to offer in the T20s. But I’ve learnt from my experiences in Sri Lanka and I’m enjoying the responsibility of generally batting anywhere between three and six for the Titans and trying to manage the innings,” Behardien said.

Those activists striving for a more representative national team will be pleased that two Black Africans have made the cut in Highveld Lions bowlers Lonwabo Tsotsobe and Aaron Phangiso, while Quinton de Kock and Imran Tahir were also chosen from the struggling Southern Gauteng franchise.

The Mumbai Indians were clearly not the only ones to be impressed by Cape Cobras speedster Beuran Hendricks, as he received his first call-up to the national squad days after receiving an IPL contract.

Captain Faf du Plessis said the Proteas were now blessed with plenty of bowling options, with another left-arm quick in Wayne Parnell joining the established duo of Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel.

“Beuran is right up there in terms of skill and he brings a lot of variety. Our fast bowlers have been very successful in the sub-continent plus we have good options in our spinners, with JP bowling very well at the moment and I can also turn my arm over if need be,” Du Plessis said.

Hendricks forced his way into the squad by taking a record 28 wickets, at an economy rate of marginally over 7 in the T20 Challenge and Hudson said he had the ability to both strike up front and bowl at the death.

Morkel is going to be a key figure for South Africa at the death when it comes to batting and he said it was a daunting challenge he was looking forward to.

“There’s always pressure in that role whether you’re playing for Tukkies or the Titans, and I look forward to it. In those conditions, it’s very difficult to bat at the end of the innings, it’s easier against the new ball. You’re often up against lots of spin and slower balls, with the wicketkeeper up, so you can’t use the pace of the ball.

“I’ve been working on ways to get off strike otherwise the opposition can put you under pressure early on,” Morkel said.

Convenor of selectors Andrew Hudson: 'Massive selection changes will not sort out the problem'

The news from the national selectors in the wake of South Africa being massacred by Australia at Centurion is that the debate over the balance of the side has been reopened but Proteas fans should not expect widespread changes for the second Test starting in Port Elizabeth on Thursday.

“From a personnel point of view, we have no doubt that the 15 chosen for the series is the right group of players. Massive selection changes will not sort out the problem, which was application – by the players’ own admission they did not play as well as they could,” convenor of selectors Andrew Hudson said yesterday.

“There may be a change, a tweak from within that squad, but it’s unlikely we’ll bring anyone in from outside that group. We weren’t unhappy with Ryan McLaren, but it has just reopened the debate about the balance of the side. Do we play seven batsmen or a spinner, it’s about the balance for Port Elizabeth.”

While McLaren can quite rightly protest that he performed the role expected of him with the ball, while there were glaring failures all around him, it seems the selectors are toying with the idea of following Australia’s gamble of only playing three seamers and a frontline spinner.

“Australia went in batting-heavy and played three seamers and a spinner. Perhaps we’ll play a batsman at seven and then have three quicks and Robin Peterson.

“But that does leave you hanging a bit if the spinner gets hit out of the attack or there’s an injury. That’s the dilemma: having the all-rounder at seven as insurance or backing four bowlers to do the job like Australia does,” Hudson admitted.

Australia’s march to victory was very much achieved on the back of Mitchell Johnson, however, and the South African batsmen played the other touring bowlers with relative comfort. South Africa don’t have a Johnson and the Australian batsmen have already shown a liking to Peterson, which could leave their attack incredibly vulnerable.

Hudson also admitted that JP Duminy, who successfully blocked out Johnson in the first innings and then fell to an extraordinary catch at short-leg off his bowling in the second innings, would come under discussion.

“JP’s place in the team – we’d need to chat about that and whether the top six are doing what we expect from them. JP hasn’t had great form but he is a quality player and he’s done well against Australia before. There’s no doubt he’s a class player,” Hudson said.