Daryn Dupavillon has achieved his “childhood dream” of getting his first Test call-up and has placed a large emphasis on being consistent in order to perform in the longer formats of the game.
Dupavillon made his ODI debut for the Proteas against Australia in March last year, but, ironically, that came as somewhat of a surprise to him since he mainly foresaw himself specializing in red-ball cricket from the outset of his career.
“If I look back to the start of my career, playing one-day cricket for the Proteas seemed much further away than the longer format,” Dupavillon told Cricket Fanatics Magazine.
“I was sort of bred into domestic cricket through the longer format so I always envisioned myself playing in that format [instead].
“I’m incredibly grateful for the opportunity, especially because injuries have hampered me throughout my career.”
The 26-year-old now forms part of a 21-man Proteas squad to tour Pakistan for the first time in 14 years where the side will play two Tests and three T20s against the hosts.
The right-arm fast seamer bases a large part of individual success at this level almost purely on consistency, especially when making the step-up from domestic cricket.
“If you look at the guys who are successful around the world, such as the likes of KG (Kagiso Rabada) and Anrich [Nortje], who’s come on to the scene in the last year or so, and what they do really well is that they’re incredibly consistent.
“They’re consistently putting in good performances, but aside from that it’s how consistent they are on the field.
“When we talk about the longer formats of the game it’s about being patient, consistent and asking as many questions as possible, certainly from a bowler’s point-of-view.”
In franchise cricket, for the Dolphins, Dupavillon has taken 81 wickets in 25 matches at an average of 27.51. At provincial level for KwaZulu-Natal, he has scored an exemplary average of 19.76, having taken a total of 105 wickets.
In terms of bowling consistent deliveries, with variations of line, length and pace and alternating these in different conditions, Dupavillon said it essentially boils down to how much work a player is willing to put in off the field.
“It all sort of comes down to practicing and bowling at targets as much as possible. I think throughout my career my consistency has probably been my issue and one of the points I’ve had to work on the hardest.
“I’m fortunate to be able to bowl fast, but I’ve been able to lean on guys like Robbie Frylinck at the Dolphins, as well as Kyle Abbott when he was still there.
“I’ve been able to watch them ply their trade and how consistent they’ve been for the periods they’ve played.
“When I was younger I might have been more stubborn and didn’t always want to listen, but as I’ve gotten older I’ve been a lot more willing to learn and open to change. That’s done wonders at this stage of my career.”
Bowling straight lines, especially in terms of pace, was Dupavillon’s advice for garnering more consistency.
“We just drive the fact of bowling straight lines and being as straight as possible, while using your front arm.
“If you look at the bowlers who are super consistent they all have very straight lines and their mechanics are very good.
“I think it’s important that none of your energy is going off to the left when you’re bowling to the right, because then your body is sort of fighting to generate the energy [needed] to go straight forward and to create that straight line,”
The former Maritzburg College scholar added that he’s been involved in guiding the amateur bowlers within the KZN ranks in terms of these techniques.
Having been in the national outfit before, Dupavillon had reaped enough confidence to perform, even when he has displayed a fluctuation of figures at domestic level.
After gaining that experience at the highest level and being a part of the national set-up, he felt he was afforded the opportunity to “work on my game from a mental point-of-view”.
Photo: Gavin Barker/BackpagePix
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