As we develop a sense of stability within our playing XI, I’d like to see us selecting one or two new faces for a Test series in the future.

What I am referring to here, of course, is the inclusion of two 30-year-old debutants, and veterans of the franchise system, into the Proteas set-up for a visit from the almighty English, who on paper at least, look one of the most formidable sides in the world.

It seemed strange and, almost cruel, to ask and expect Pieter Malan and Rassie van der Dussen to ‘slot’ into that top 6 against a bowling attack that consisted of Jimmy Anderson and Stuart Broad who together boast more than 1000 Test wickets, as well as the ever promising and frighteningly quick and dangerous Jofra Archer.

Some might argue that it is the result of a system that has failed to produce quality and mature youngsters or rather the effect of more than a handful of quality batsmen currently playing under Kolpak contracts in the UK.

I disagree.

Even with the plight of Kolpak contracts weighing on South African cricket, I believe we have done very well to produce some of the talent that has been on show in not only the 4-day format but also at a semi-professional and schoolboy level.

The quality that I’ve seen ‘behind the scenes’ has excited me to my core and I genuinely do believe that South African cricket, upon deeper inspection, is in better shape than it might indicate at times.

Having said that, do I believe the younger and more ‘promising’ players deserved the nod ahead of the more experienced campaigners who, if we’re honest with ourselves, probably have 3 or 4 years of good cricket left in them? Absolutely not.

I’m afraid that time has, unfortunately, come and gone, and I believe that before each and every game, the only question that should be on the selector’s minds is ‘Who are the best XI cricketers right now who have the ability to win us this Test match?’

I find it slightly upsetting and almost unacceptable that when the moment came to knuckle down in the final innings to save a Test match, that we needed a lesson on resilience, patience, guts and determination from players in the first and second Test matches.

Do I think that there was a time when we could have given more youngsters opportunities?

Yes, absolutely I do. I think the Proteas are guilty of being too ‘comfortable’ at times, particularly that 2008-2012 period where we were arguably the best side in Test cricket.

It was a golden era of South African cricket where a number of legends all seemed to peak at around the same time. The positions and roles within those positions were clearly defined and I’d go as far as saying that no one was really in a position where they were ‘fighting for their spot’ (as controversial at that my sound).

This is where I would have liked to see the selectors and the management really make a conscious effort to identify a handful of promising lads, and then really work with them for a number of years, both off and on the field.

I believe that South African cricket thereafter would have benefitted greatly and I’d go as far as saying that we would likely have fewer quality players who put pen to paper on Kolpak deals in recent years.

In closing, I am happy that South Africa have opted for a couple of domestically experienced players who have a mountain of runs behind them, possibly at the expense of a younger ‘hot commodity’.

South African cricket is in a fragile place at the moment and we have yet to really earn the right to ‘experiment’ with a crop of youngsters just yet.

Having said that, as we develop a sense of stability within our playing XI, I’d like to see us firstly selecting one or two new faces for a Test series, and secondly for those youngsters to get as much exposure to the likes of Charl Langeveldt and Jacques Kallis who will hopefully have something to offer that they may or may not be getting at their respective franchise sides.

Follow Dan on Twitter and Check out his Website

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.

Photo: Shaun Roy/BackpagePix