SA were unrecognisable against India: Smith
LONDON: Dismayed by South Africa’s capitulation, former skipper Graeme Smith said the Proteas were simply “unrecognisable” during their timid loss to India in the door-die Champions Trophy clash.
South Africa were hammered by eight wickets in the virtual quarterfinal match, in which they could only post 191 after being invited to bat.
“I still care deeply about the environment that I spent so much time building as a player, and it hurts to see such an unrecognisable South Africa performance,” Smith wrote in his column for the ICC’S official website.
“The side have been missing that spark, or that intensity to their play that characterises South Africa cricket...the positivity to our play and the energy that we’ve come to expect from this group of players just hasn’t been there,” he lamented.
Smith said what was on display yesterday was a “cautious style of play that seems to lack the intent”.
“What I would have liked to have seen from the guys at the top of the order is, at least, an attempt to put Jasprit Bumrah and Bhuvneshwar Kumar under pressure. Anything to put them off their game and bring their plans in to question,” he said.
“Our approach was far more conservative, and if you’re going to play that way, you can’t afford the calami- ties that unfolded in terms of the two mid-innings run outs. They will kill any momentum you have, and suck the energy from a dressing room,” he opined.
Praising India’s tactics, Smith said Virat Kohli and his men showed what it is like playing positive cricket.
“Today, those key moments in the game where you look for someone to take the initiative just seemed to pass South Africa by. India played the game with more intensity, it took more risks and stuck to its method and game formula far better than the South Africa team,” he explained.
“Mindset, and your approach to the game, are those one percent factors that make the difference at this level. When those factors are not there, you pay the price and it’s the team’s approach that has been the missing ingredient,” he added. Smith said India are now favourites to be in the finals. NEW DELHI: The BCCI will soon appoint an ethics officer to address the issue of conflict of interest, which has been plaguing Indian cricket for some time now.
Committee of Administrators (COA) chairman Vinod Rai on Monday said such a decision was the need of the hour.
“All issues regarding conflict of interest will be referred to ethics officer appointed by the BCCI. He will be appointed soon. A lot of complaints regarding conflict of interest have been received,” said Rai after a meeting. Historian Ramachandra Guha, who resigned from the committee recently, had lashed out at the BCCI’S functioning in his resignation letter and made observation on conflict of interest in the case of Rahul Dravid, who is India A coach and also a mentor of the Delhi Daredevils IPL franchise. Dravid has sought more clarity on the subject so that he can take an informed decision. Guha sparked a debate on the issue as he also alleged that legendary opening batsman Sunil Gavaskar also had a conflict of interest in his working as BCCI commentator when he also had stakes in Professional Management Group (PMG) which signed up Shikhar Dhawan for three years.