So over the last few weeks, we bared witness to the second edition of the Mzanzi Super League.
We saw returning veterans, fantastic international players and perhaps most importantly, we saw the return of Tabraiz Shamsi and him phoning a friend every time he took a wicket…
So, much like our beloved Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus, I started thinking “outside the box” and drew up a list of prospects.
Considering that this list will most certainly bring controversy, I ask the readers to greet it with an open mind and that the long term goal is winning the T20 World Cup in Australia next year.
So without further ado, here is my list – The Proteas 23-gun salute:
- Janneman Malan
- Temba Bavuma
- Faf du Plessis
- Rassie van der Dussen
- Reeza Hendricks
- Wiaan Mulder
- George Linde
- Kagiso Rabada
- Quinton de Kock (c/wk)
- Bjorn Fortuin
- Chris Morris
- Dwaine Pretorius
- Dale Steyn
- Andile Phehlukwayo
- David Miller
- Lungi Ngidi
- Gerald Coetzee
- Keshav Maharaj
- Kerwin Mungroo
- Imran Tahir
- Tabraiz Shamsi
- Sisanda Magala
- Jon-Jon Smuts
I have broken the list up into regulars, the suicide squad (the Proteas’ version of the Springbok “Bomb Squad”) and “the new kids on the block”.
The regulars are of course the season campaigners that are always selected for international T20 squads.
The regulars:
- Faf
- Tahir
- Rabada
- Miller
- Ngidi
- Andile
- Morris
- De Kock
The suicide squad is, of course, the “pièce de résistance” where specific players would come in and potentially play match-winning innings’.
The suicide squad:
- Reeza
- Rassie
- Pretorius
- Steyn
- Shamsi
The “new kids on the block” i.e. debutants or performers in other cricket factions.
In order to truly dominate every other team in the World Cup, traditional batting orders are not going to work. Jon-Jon Smuts, for example, had a very good 2019, doing particularly well with the blade during the MSL.
Mungroo is quite an understated bowler averaging 18.8 and a healthy economy of 6.8 in the domestic circuit.
Elgar, while traditionally an opener, can potentially come in the middle order.
The new kids on the block:
- Malan
- Bavuma
- Mulder
- Linde
- Fortuin
- Coetzee
- Maharaj
- Mungroo
- Jon-Jon Smuts
- Magala
In amidst of this “playing 23” we, of course, need to whittle it down to a much smaller squad of 15.
Concurrently we have a number opening batters as prospects (Malan, Elgar and Smuts) to partner with QDK.
Miller shouldn’t bat lower down the order anymore, as Van Der Dussen or Bavuma could potentially come in at No 6 and score more runs without going the aerial route like the infamous Miller.
In terms of bowling, the work is also cut out for the selectors. They may gamble on Dale Steyn once again who had a string of bad luck when it came to his injuries.
However, for the first time in years, there are more than 2 prospects that happen to be spinners. In terms of rank, we have Tahir who is the leading wicket-taker and previously held the number one spot for some time.
This is followed closely by Shamsi who, when not answering phone calls from his right cricket boot, does take some wickets as well.
However, it’s not the initial two that brings joy to my heart (like seeing Tom Selleck rocking a Hawaiian shirt while driving his Ferrari). George Linde, Bjorn Fortuin and more recently, Keshav Maharaj are knocking on the T20 door quite aggressively.
All three also offer assistance with the bat, notching up quite a few big scores in other formats of the game.
Fortuin is not only economical but an aggressive wicket-taker as well. I have seen shades of India’s veteran off-spinner Harbhajan “the turbinator” Singh, whilst watching him bowl.
With the tours of England and Australia coming up very soon, I will be quite eager to see the T20 squads being selected for Team SA.
Who will you pick in your squad? Sound off your comments below.
Peace, Love and Cricket
Follow Ravi “The Heavy Roller” Reddy on Twitter
Disclaimer: Cricket Fanatics Magazine encourages freedom of speech and the expression of diverse views from fans. The views of this article published on cricketfanaticsmag.com are therefore the writer’s own and do not necessarily represent the views of the Cricket Fanatics Magazine team.
