http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Allan-Robert-Border-c43726 de Villiers - Cometh the hour, cometh the man – Part 1 - Opinion
After a flood of criticism from shocking defeats in the NatWest Series of 2012 managed to inundate the Captain of South Africa, http://www.senore.com/Cricket/AB-de-Villiers-c887 responded with great tenacity to save his country from a series defeat against England. The fact that the Proteas
were trailing two games to one, meant that the previous encounter at the picturesque Trent Bridge ground became a must win affair for a beleaguered South African outfit. Vague flashbacks of choking under pressure had to be avoided at all costs and the Proteas
needed a savior to stamp his authority, and help the country gain much needed pride.
That savior was divinely ordained, and happened to be no other than the captain of South Africa himself. After ensuring that the opposition was restricted to just 182 inside fifty overs, de Villiers played a gem of an innings, when his side were tottering
at one stage and needed a match winning combination. What goes to his credit for the first part of the game was his captaincy, which was marked by prudence, digestion of the situation and erudition.
England had won the toss and elected to bat first on a good batting wicket under sunny skies. De Villiers, understanding the conditions, decided to go ahead with the proposition of deploying some of http://www.senore.com/Cricket/South-Africa-c757’s finest fielders in the right positions,
and constant swapping of places between them. De Villiers was also chirpy behind the stumps, where words of encouragement were blared towards fielders such as http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Faf-du-Plessis-c1427 and JP Duminy. The result was a reinvigoration of spirits and a stifling of the run
flow for the English batsmen. South African fielders were seen diving in the inner ring to stop crucial singles, which eventually pressurized the English batsmen to go over the top.
Sharp fielding eventually prompted the batting side to come up with some innovative strokes. Most of them however, perished at their own peril. The shot by batsman http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Eoin-Joseph-Gerard-Morgan-c56032 for example, hinted at utter restlessness, after tight bowling from the South
Africans strangled him to the very core. Morgan, who is normally considered to be a batsman who scores boundaries or pepper sixes with ease, eventually smacked http://www.senore.com/Cricket/HM-Amla-c1557 in the 20th over to leave his side reeling at 82 for
4. Similarly, http://www.senore.com/Cricket/M-Morkel-c73528 summed up how England withered
under the pressure which was exerted by the South African bowlers.
The pressure exerted was largely a product of de Villiers shrewd captaincy. He mixed up the bowling attack well and ensured that England got a taste of sheer pace and quality spin. England failed to settle down, as they were seen playing rash strokes and
fishing outside the off stump. A prime example of http://www.senore.com/Cricket/DW-Steyn-c1409 in the mid overs of the innings. Steyn, who normally is reserved for the death after he bowls half of his overs up
front, ruffled England, after they had become accustomed to playing spin. One of the players who were snared by Steyn was http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Samit-Patel-c2426, and his dismissal goes to de Villiers' credit. The captain acknowledged Patel’s big hitting exploits off spinners, which
prompted him to resort to his strike bowler instead. Steyn’s introduction into the attack eventually elicited a poor stroke from http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Huzefa-Mohammed-Patel-c63657 and derailed England’s chances of posting a score in excess of 200. The batsman’s departure at 124 for 6 in the 31st over
meant that the Poms had to settle for a mediocre score, which was well below par in modern day cricket.
Continued in Part 2...
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