20 Questions with AB de Villiers
As some of you might remember, Sports Illustrated recently had the honour of having Proteas superstar AB de Villiers guest-edit the October edition.
As you would expect, AB was a hero during his time in the offices, game for anything and always willing to give you some of his time.
SI online cornered him for a quick video session of 20 Questions, and there were some revelations – including a first-hand account of who eats more during lunchtime in the Proteas set-up, and the most irritating player he has come up against.
20 Questions With AB de Villiers
As some of you might remember, Sports Illustrated recently had the honour of having Proteas superstar AB de Villiers guest-edit the October edition.
As you would expect, AB was a hero during his time in the offices, game for anything and always willing to give you some of his time.
SI online cornered him for a quick video session of 20 Questions, and there were some revelations – including a first-hand account of who eats more during lunchtime in the Proteas set-up, and the most irritating player he has come up against.
All About Johan Botha
Graeme Smith passes the baton to Johan Botha.
Offspinner Johan Botha has been named captain of South Africa’s Twenty20 team, replacing Graeme Smith, who stood down. Smith remains captain of the Test side and will continue to captain the one-day side until the end of the World Cup.
“Johan was the unanimous choice of the Board and we have every confidence that he will do an excellent job leading up to the next edition of the ICC World Twenty20 in 2012,” Cricket South Africa CEO Gerald Majola said.
Born in 1982, Botha stood in for Smith during the limited-overs leg of South Africa’s tour of Australia in 2009, leading the team to a series win. That experience appears to have convinced CSA he is the right man for the job.
“Johan has an excellent record as a leader,” selection convener Andrew Hudson said. “He was an inspirational captain when he stood in for Smith in the ODI series victory in Australia in 2009. His appointment is part of the process of refreshing our Pro20 squad and also deciding whether to follow the route of having different captains for different formats of the game.”
Botha said he had enjoyed his earlier taste of the captaincy was hopeful he would do well enough so that when the time came, he would be considered for the one-day captaincy as well.
Botha has played 21 Twenty20 internationals, taking 22 wickets at an average of 19.18 and scoring 113 runs at an average of 18.83.
His test debut was in Australia in January 2006 and his last test was against the West Indies in June this year.
His ODI debut was against India in November 2005.
He began his career as an ordinary medium pacer for the Eastern Cape Warriors – by his own admission he was quicker than 125 kmph – but it was after Mickey Arthur, the South Africa coach, had a look at him in the nets and saw something else that Botha dropped his ambitions for speed.
Spurred by Arthur’s comments that he would do well to turn to spin, Botha remodeled his action and began studying the art of the doosra – the ball that turns away from the right-handed batsman – in hopes of emulating the wiles of Harbhajan Singh. A successful tour of Sri Lanka with the South Africa A side – in which he took key wickets as well as scoring runs – saw Botha’s name penciled in as a potential spinning allrounder.
A determined, fiercely competitive individual, Botha found a place in the squad to tour India for a five-match one-day series after Nicky Boje pulled out over security concerns in regard to charges of matchfixing.
His debut – in the first match at Hyderabad – resulted in 31 runs from six overs with the wicket of Irfan Pathan, bowled through the gate. Both Arthur and Graeme Smith rated him highly and saw him as vital to South Africa’s progress towards the World Cup.
But his career came to a grinding halt when his action was cited on his Test debut in January 2006, and following testing at the University of Western Australia, he was banned by the ICC.
Botha reworked his action but it was confirmed once again in September that he bent his arm more than 15 degrees. However, after another review in November, Botha’s action was cleared by the ICC. He made his comeback during the 2007 Afro-Asia Cup and returned to the South African one-day team during the tour of Pakistan in 2007-08.
His stock as a resourceful and intelligent one-day cricketer continued to rise, and Botha captained the limited-overs leg of South Africa’s trip to Australia in Graeme Smith’s absence, leading the team to a series win. Though he has faced competition for his place as a spinning allrounder from Roelof van der Merwe, Botha remains a fixture in South Africa’s one-day set-up.
Courtesy of Cricinfo and iafrica.com
Clinical South Africa Wrap Up Series 2-0
Paul Harris, Morne Morkel, AB de Villiers and Hashim Amla celebrate before South Africa defeated the West Indies.
South Africa inflicted a dispiriting series loss on West Indies at a venue that was once the home team’s fortress and finished the bilateral tour unbeaten.
Shivnarine Chanderpaul’s hopes of compiling a competitive lead on the fourth morning were quashed by a menacing spell from Morne Morkel, who cut through the West Indies tail to ensure a quick end to their resistance.
Chanderpaul had stood firm amid West Indies’ capitulation on the third day, and taken his team into the lead with support from Shane Shillingford, who was dismissed shortly before stumps. The men who followed, though, were unable to put up a fight.
Morkel attacked Sulieman Benn from round the wicket, getting the ball to move both ways and troubling the left-hander who played and missed often. He was ultimately done in by one that nipped back in sharply to break through his defences and send the off stump cartwheeling. Kemar Roach followed soon after, edging a drive to Mark Boucher after a series of short balls.
Chanderpaul had shown confidence in the tail, not hesitating to pick singles early in the over, but was left watching as his partners fell quickly. The debutant Brandon Bess poked a short-of-length delivery to slip, as Morkel polished off the tail in three overs, leaving South Africa just 47 to chase. Roach displayed plenty of aggression, nipping out three wickets, striking Graeme Smith on the neck with a bouncer, and even getting involved in an extended verbal exchange with Jacques Kallis. But the game was over and done with.
The West Indies captain Chris Gayle had called on his batsmen to shoulder more responsibility during his team’s 5-0 debacle in the one-dayers. However, some of those who did play the Test series failed to fulfil to their role. Dale Richards, drafted in for this Test in place of Travis Dowlin, conceded his wicket cheaply in both innings, playing across the line to be trapped plumb, and spooning a catch off a needless pull.
More worrying would be the case of Narsingh Deonarine. He had looked solid in the first innings before, inexplicably, switching to an aggressive approach to be bowled. In the second, he played a reckless drive first ball to offer a catch to short cover. Equally irresponsible was the dismissal of Denesh Ramdin, the former vice-captain, who slashed a wide delivery to the keeper in the second innings.
Though South Africa’s pace attack had far more venom, the battle in the spin department was more evenly contested with each of the four frontline spinners in this Test extracting assistance from a gradually deteriorating track. The move to pick a spinner, Johan Botha, in place of left-arm seamer Lonwabo Tsotsobe, proved decisive for the visitors.
And the seamers Dale Steyn and Morkel, on a pitch that was of lesser benefit to them than the slow bowlers, varied their lengths superbly, ruffling up the batsmen with the short deliveries and creating the temptation to play by pushing the odd one fuller.
But while South Africa, with more assuredness in their batting and a generally superior outfit, were favourites throughout, their task was made easier by the reckless approach adopted by their opponents.
Courtesy of Cricinfo
Proteas Blossoming Again?
While soccer and rugby have hogged the headlines, the Proteas’ victory in the first Test against the West Indies went largely unnoticed by the public and even to some extent the media.
While some may claim the apathy pertains to a fest of other sport on offer, others will point to a weak West Indies side faced and state the Proteas were always expected to win without any pomp or ceremony.
While no one expected mad celebrations after a T20, ODI series and one Test win, the Proteas do deserve a doff of the cap for the way they have bounced back since the ICC T2O World Cup debacle.
The South African’s were impressive in the manner they dismantled their hosts winning by 163 runs with a day to spare. They went about their work with a minimum of fuss and plenty of efficiency. As the famous line goes: ‘You are only able to play (and beat) the opposition in front of you.’
South African fans, however, are no doubt still smarting at the way the Proteas bombed out of the ICC T20 World Cup during the group stages and many will argue that a West Indian whitewash only serves to paper over the cracks.
South Africa’s cricketers came in for a barrage of (warranted) critiscm at the time – and many speculated whether Corrie van Zyl was the right appointment as mentor until after the 2011 World Cup.
Many of the senior members in the side such as Captain Graeme Smith, Mark Boucher and Jacques Kallis have also been called into question.
While the old guard continue to perform at Test level, perhaps it’s time for a host of fresh faces to mark their debuts in the T20 and ODI arena. The likes of Rilee Rossouw, Colin Ingram and CJ de Villiers are all knocking on the door.
For now however, it seems the selection panel headed by new convenor, Andrew Hudson, will stick largely to the tried and tested. His panel will point to the fact the Proteas were victorious in the two T20 internationals and followed that up with a 5-0 whitewash in the ODI series.
He has however handed AB de Villiers the gloves (in the interim) and the addition of Ryan Mclaren in the shorter forms of the game has been a major fillip to SA’s lineup. Rory Kleinveldt and Lonwabo Tsotsobe were also given more game time than ever before.
The Proteas’ most recent victory saw them take a 1-0 lead in the three-Test series and will no doubt give them a renewed sense of belief and vigour.
While the Proteas struggled against the West Indians spinners on day one, they regrouped well and piled on the runs – totalling 558 runs over two innings.
On the bowling front, Dale Steyn – the best Test bowler – further underlined his credentials with a match haul of eight for 94. These fine figures deservedly earned the Phalaborwa Express the Man of the Match award.
Morne Morkel also chipped in with six valuable scalps.
The second Test gets underway at Warner Park tomorrow live on SuperSport 2 from 15.30.
By Grant Shub
HAVE YOUR SAY: What are your thoughts on the current state of SA cricket?
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