"We need to think ahead" – Victor Mpitsang

Victor Mpitsang emphasises the importance of thinking ahead when selecting the Proteas’ squads for the upcoming inbound tours.

Among the many things that Victor Mpitsang had to give attention to on his first day in office was an interview with Khalid Mohidin, Founder of Cricket Fanatics Magazine.

Mpitsang takes over the reins as Convenor of Selectors from Linda Zondi, who was part of the selection group from 2013 and became the Convenor of Selectors in 2015.

For a team that is in transition, Victor seems to be the final piece of the puzzle in the dream team put together by Cricket South Africa Director of Cricket, Graeme Smith.

It is only now that the rebuilding starts, with Mpitsang offering a fresh perspective on which players to pick. This is not to suggest that Zondi failed as a selector, however, sometimes having a different set of eyes might help.

Now, the question is, does Victor have a plan? He does, lots of plans.

For instance, his first plan is to use the England tour to South Africa as a starting point to preparing for upcoming major tournaments.

“What is our goals? What do we want to get out of the series? The T20 World Cup is around the corner, next year. But then you also have to consider the ODI World Cup coming, and it’s not far off, and three years is not a long time. So we need to plan accordingly. We need think ahead, plan with those factors, in mind,” he told Cricket Fanatics Magazine, explaining the selection process ahead of the series.

Another topic he touched on is the issue of transformation, a difficult and emotive topic.

On the subject, Victor was blunt, he feels that it should not be looked at as being just about the numbers. He is of the opinion that “transformation is misunderstood by the numbers, thinking we need to pick X amount of numbers. We do not pick numbers, we pick cricketers…”

When asked what message he has for the players fighting hard in the domestic league, Mpitsang did not mince his words. Players who do well domestically will get their shot at national level.

“The important part is that we need to understand that the domestic side provides players for the Proteas. If you perform domestically, you will be rewarded…When you don’t expose players that are doing well in the system, where are you going to get the players who will play international cricket?”

For more, watch the interview.