SA cricket: a great start to 2004
Brad Morgan
23 January 2004
In their recent Test series against the West Indies the sun certainly shone on the South African cricket team, which helped the Proteas put a forgettable 2003 – read World Cup – behind them, with a whole slew of records set in a three-nil win from four matches.
Plenty of runs were scored; in fact the 20 tons in all – 12 by South Africa and eight by the Caribbean islanders – established a record for a four-match series.
Certainly, South Africa dominated the contests with their batting, becoming only the second team ever to tally more than 500 in their first innings in four consecutive Tests.
And it wasn't as if they just made it to 500. In the first Test Graeme Smith’s men tallied 561. At Kingsmead in the second Test it was a South African record 658 for 9 declared. Their lowest total came in third Test in Cape Town, where they managed only 532. In the fourth Test at Supersport Park, a new record high could easily have been achieved, but
Smith chose to declare on a massive 604 for 6!
Kallis masterclass
Leading the way was Jacques Kallis. The Western Province all-rounder was all efficiency and class with the bat, scoring centuries in each Test and making a world record 712 for a four-Test series. His average was a breathtaking 178. Witness his run of scores: 158 and 44, 177, 73 and 130 not out, 130 not out. Consider also that when he was dismissed at the Wanderers for 44, South Africa was chasing quick runs in order to declare as quickly as possible.
The scary thing for the West Indian bowlers was that Kallis never looked in any trouble whatsoever. Given the nature of the game, the strange things that can happen on pitches, it was truly a superior series of performances by a superior cricketer.
Not far behind Kallis was Herschelle Gibbs, a player of tremendous talent who in the past two or three years has learnt to match that talent with commitment. The combination
has been very telling. Gibbs scored three centuries in the series, twice making 142 and the third time falling just short of a double-century, with 192. Gibbs, like Kallis, averaged over 100. He scored 583 runs at 116.6, providing the Proteas with the wonderful luxury of a solid start time after time.
Of course, it takes a partnership to provide good starts, and captain Graeme Smith, although not as effective as Gibbs, nonetheless enjoyed a good series with the bat, notching centuries in the first and fourth Tests, and tallying over 400 runs at 69.66.
Add up the averages of the top three in the batting order and you should have an answer of 364. With that kind of performance up front, it is no wonder that the Proteas dominated the series. Unfortunately for the West Indians, the South African batting assault didn't end there - Gary Kirsten, Jacques Rudolph and Mark Boucher also hit centuries during the course of the series.
Bowling
matters
The West Indians did alright with the bat, hitting eight hundreds, and in six of their eight innings they exceeded 300. Facing scores of 500-plus, however, they couldn't match up to the South African batsmen. Make no mistake, though, the Windies' batting was not what let them down, it was their bowling.
During the course of the series, South African bowlers managed to capture 75 wickets between them. The tourists managed only 44 in reply. It could easily be argued that the wickets were batsmen-friendly given the numerous records that were set, but the Proteas' bowlers managed to get the job done, and some of them enjoyed a truly outstanding series.
Makhaya Ntini, who was the world's leading Test wicket taker in 2003, was the spearhead of the South African attack, capturing a South African record 29 wickets for a four-Test series, including taking five wickets in an innings on three occasions.
He was named man of the match in the first and
fourth Tests, while Jacques Kallis won the award in the other two Tests, making it a two-horse race for the man of the series honours. Ntini won the award because runs were so plentiful in the series, while the bowlers found the going much tougher.
Since the retirement of the great Allan Donald, Ntini has stepped up and lifted his game. The Proteas might no longer have the pace of Donald in his prime, paired with the nagging but sharp Shaun Pollock, but they still have a fine opening pair in Ntini and Pollock. Ntini is all energy and attack, while Pollock has slowed down to medium pace, but is naggingly accurate and very difficult to score off.
Surprising Nel
Undoubtedly the most pleasant surprise for South Africa during the course of the series was the performance of Andre Nel. He proved to be a consistent wicket taker, picking up five wickets in the first Test, six in the second, six in the third, and four in the fourth to end the series
with a healthy haul of 22 wickets at 23.18 each. He showed a lot of spirit and improved control, and his improvement is definitely a big plus for South African cricket.
The one area of concern for the Proteas will be that of a spin bowler. Neither Paul Adams nor Robin Peterson impressed when given the ball. Between them they sent down 57 overs and conceded 267 runs without capturing a single wicket. Maybe the answer lies with Nicky Boje, who only recently returned to provincial action after breaking a leg in a one-day international against England in mid-2003.
So, apart from the questions that remain about a quality spinner, the South African cricket team looks to be in good shape. Next up is a one-day series against the West Indies in which the Proteas will be looking to once again crush their opposition.
After all, it was the same team, the West Indies, that beat South Africa in the first match of the 2003 World Cup and that had a severely negative impact on
the Proteas' chances of qualifying for the Super Sixes, something that they eventually failed to do.
Coach Eric Simons' charges will be full of confidence, but anything can happen in one-day cricket, and the West Indians have the hard-hitting batsmen capable of winning a game on any day.
One-day Internationals versus the West Indies
1st ODI – 25 January, Cape Town (d/n)
2nd ODI – 28 January, Port Elizabeth (d/n)
3rd ODI – 30 January, Durban (d/n)
4th ODI – 1 February, Centurion (day)
5th ODI, 4 February, Johannesburg (d/n)
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