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‘Last thing we want is a square turner’ – Domingo
South Africa’s coach Russell Domingo wanted his newer Test players to cement their places during the upcoming series against Sri Lanka. With only two additions to the squad that toured Australia – in reserve batsman Theunis de Bruyn and left-arm seamer Wayne Parnell – changes to South Africa’s XI from the Adelaide Test were unlikely.
“We’ve only decided to pick 13 for this series. It gives us a few less selection problems and gives the incumbents a sense of security and they can focus really hard on their preparation and not worry too much about selection. It just makes it a lot clearer and a lot more simplistic,” Domingo said. “The young players have really come in and stepped up. They are all new players that, a year and a half ago, were playing debut Test matches and now they’ve become established in the side. That’s very pleasing to see.”
The current squad included four men who made their debuts in the last two years and Domingo made special mentions of all of them. “Keshav Maharaj has really stepped up, Stephen [Cook] has got two hundreds in six Tests and Kagiso Rabada and Temba Bavuma have won Test matches for us,” he said.
Given the uncertainty surrounding South Africa’s depth earlier this year, to have the younger crop coming through was a sign the team was evolving. In addition, good personal performances, Domingo explained, brought with them a strong sense of belief.
“Players will always feel part of the team once they start producing the goods. They will feel as though they are a valued member and worthy of playing for their county once they produce the goods,” he said. “Once they perform, they sense, ‘I can do this and I belong in this team,’ and that takes a lot of pressure off them and allows them to free up and put on those performances.”
A slightly older example of this is Quinton de Kock, whose first Test was in Port Elizabeth almost three years ago. Then, de Kock was an emergency replacement for an ill Alviro Petersen but since, he has become a player South Africa cannot imagine taking the field without.
This year, de Kock scored his maiden Test hundred and enjoyed a streak of five scores of fifty or more. He was also South Africa’s leading run-scorer in ODIs in 2016 and was named the ICC’s ODI cricketer of the year today to cap off his best year as an international to date.
“Everyone is very proud of him. He has had an outstanding 12 months. About a year and a half ago, he was left out of the Test side when we were in Bangladesh and he has showed some real good character to come back. He is in phenomenal form at the moment and everyone is really pleased for him,” Domingo said.
A season before de Kock’s maiden appearance, three other current players, Faf du Plessis, Dean Elgar and Kyle Abbott, were capped for the first time which meant that eight out of South Africa’s squad of 13 have only played Test cricket for four summers. As much as that may complete the so-called transition phase, Domingo reminded that there was still room for some old hands, specifically one man who remains sidelined with injury.
AB de Villiers was absent for a third successive Test series – remarkable because he played his first 98 matches without missing one – but Domingo was confident he would slot straight back in when he recovered from his elbow injury. “Everybody wants to stay in the team but naturally they know that AB is one of the best batsmen in the world, and when he is fit and after he has played a few matches and proved his fitness, naturally he will come back into the team,” Domingo said. “That’s just the way it is – someone has to make space for him because he’s an outstanding player.”
Firdose Moonda is ESPNcricinfo’s South Africa correspondent
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Source: ESPN Crickinfo