An opportunity for the wounded Springboks - Part 2 - Opinion
Continued from Part 1...
The challenge however, is not limited to the team only. Individuals under the spotlight have also failed to perform on a consistent basis, and for them, this game would definitely be a matter of pride and prestige. The skipper, AB de Villiers, is one such
individual under the spotlight, where his role as captain has continued to be a subject of considerable debate. This is in spite of the fact that under him South Africa had not lost a single ODI series. Some of the defeats in bilateral encounters however,
have been shambolic. The 2011/2012 series against Sri Lanka is a prime example, where South Africa had to settle for a 3-2 score line. Two of the defeats in that series, at the hands of a beleaguered Sri Lankan outfit, were simply inexcusable. The NatWest
Series of 2012 can at best be drawn by de Villiers, and this fact should be instinctive enough for him to fight his way amid all the failings. He, as an individual, would want to prove a point by drawing the series and silencing his critics. As a captain,
he wouldn’t want to throw away the chance of boasting about how his team denied the number one ranked side in the world a series victory in the wake of the all important ICC World T20 in Sri Lanka.
Other players who bore a wealth of expectations prior to this series include, Faf du Plessis and Lonwabo Tsotsobe. Both these talented players have plenty of points to prove. Tsotsobe and du Plessis were considered to be ODI specialists in the lead up to
this series, yet despite Tsotsobe rattling the English batting on occasions, and du Plessis coming up with sheer brilliance on the field, nothing extraordinary has come from them. Du Plessis, for example, is yet to play an innings of substance in this series
and anchoring South Africa’s fragile middle order, which continues to falter against England. Similarly, Tsotsobe has been repeatedly targeted by the English batsmen with impunity. These individual blemishes were eventually the difference between both sides
and are a damning indictment for a team, which is struggling to shed away the chokers tag.
England on the other hand, came out guns blazing and played with a distinct style and flavor, which has denied South Africa the chance to silence them. If they manage to draw level at Nottingham, then that would at least ensure that South Africa had not
lost anything substantive in the ODI arena. The task however, would be a difficult one as players like Samit Patel and Ravi Bopara continue to perform well for England amid all the pressure. England’s batting line up also looks far more formidable, and less
prone to collapses as compared to South Africa’s. In light of this, it is incumbent that South Africa put in a match winning performance on Wednesday, which would at least give them due credit for keeping the best ODI team in the world at bay.
The battle for South Africa however, as it has so often been, is mental rather than physical. The horrors of their last tour to England, where they succumbed to a 4-0 white wash, would continue to haunt them. To go that extra mile, inspiration needs to be
drawn from their Test match heroics. If they are prudent enough to draw inspiration from their past heroics rather than repeatedly being haunted by their failings, then they might just be able to draw level in a difficult series.
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