Sri Lanka will be mighty tough by Mpumelelo Mbangwa 25/06/2014, 10:54 One looks at the various cricket-playing countries and can sound their opinion on whether they are a powerhouse in the game or not. The likes of England and Australia are traditional giants of cricket in all senses of the word, as they have the financial muscle. In times past, they would actually control the game on a global scale. In recent times, there is no doubt that the power has shifted to the subcontinent and to one country in particular, India. When it comes to just issues of performance on the field, though, there is a more even spread in terms of the balance of power, as nations have seemed to take turns to rule the world in that regard. England had their heyday when they won many an Ashes battle and then it was Australia for a long time who dominated. The West Indies had a great rule in the mid-to-late 1970s and early 1980s, destroying all who came before them. These periods were defined and nobody can argue about who was at the helm then. South Africa has been the team to beat in test match cricket for the last four-to-five years and it would not be far from the truth to say that many teams wished they could be like the Proteas, who had a modicum of consistency with their very well-balanced side. To have one or two great players in a team is quite lucky as it affords that team the chance for some unlikely victories here and there. Having four or five in one side is, simply put, to land with ones bum in the butter! The Proteas have been, for a very long while, the envy of the cricket world with Graeme Smith, Hashim Amla, Jacques Kallis, AB deVilliers and Dale Steyn in their midst. Id throw Vernon Philander into that mix but he has not quite played enough test matches yet. So, now they go from being this powerhouse side with a litany of greats in it to having just a couple, as is the norm with most teams. Replacing those colossal figures will be young guns who are very much wet behind the ears and so prone to great inconsistencies, particularly at the start of their international careers. The onus does shift to those who remain as senior players but to expect the team to just keep rolling along as if nothing has changed would be wishful thinking; there will be disappointment. A glance over to England, where the Proteas’ next opponents, Sri Lanka, have shown that they can mix it with anyone even away from home. This should suggest to everyone that back in their own surroundings Sri Lanka will be even more difficult to defeat. Their show of character in the United Kingdom will provide them with much-renewed confidence and only make the test sterner for South Africa in July. Determination needs to be shown straight away by the new members of the Proteas side and coming away from the Sri Lanka test match series will be an achievement in itself when one considers that those spin-friendly conditions have not been too kind to many, if any, South African teams that visited in the past. There will be so many things to watch for starting with the new captain. Does he have the tactical nous to maneuver his team into winning positions or to get them out of losing ones? Of course he needs help from his players! Will the players play the youngsters they have added to the squad, Stiaan van Zyl and Dane Piedt? What will the make-up of the team be? Will the seventh batsman be retained? So many questions make this a fascinating time in the rebuilding of the Proteas and, if there can be relative success as well, then things sure will be hunkydory. There is no doubt in my mind that Sri Lanka and beyond will be tough.
Posted on: Wed, 25 Jun 2014 15:48:08 +0000
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