Quinton is the epitome of responsibility
Shamsi shows there is life after Tahir
England: 258/8 (Denly 87, Woakes 40, Shamsi 3/38) South Africa: 259/3 (De Kock 107, Bavuma 98, Jordan 1/31) South Africa won by 7 wickets, lead series 1-0
FROM the beginning it was clear that this fresh-faced Proteas one-day international team was on to something.
Maybe it started with Quinton de Kock actually winning the toss, something his predecessor Faf du Plessis had been grappling with for some time.
But apart from making this vibrant group of youngsters believe they can now actually beat any opponent after crushing the world champions by seven wickets on a glorious night at the foot of Table Mountain yesterday, it was the shot in the arm South African cricket desperately needed after a long and arduous summer.
One win doesn’t quantify as much – just ask the Test side. But it was the quality of performance that was most pleasurable. Bar a couple of fielding lapses, De Kock’s rookies dominated every facet of the first ODI against England. And as is so often, in whatever format, it was De Kock who played the most prominent role. It seems this leadership thing sits well with De Kock for he was the epitome of responsibility.
A key element of his game is the ability to assess the conditions. He did that superbly well yesterday, realising quickly that the pitch was slower than the usual Newlands surface. The captain’s innings of 107 (113 balls) was a masterpiece of placement and timing, almost delicate in places and at odds with the brute force he is so often associated with.
De Kock has often enjoyed match-winning partnerships in redball cricket with Temba Bavuma and yesterday they resumed their love affair under the Newlands lights.
Bavuma (98) was a bundle of energy from the moment he came to the crease. In fact, the little man from Langa was dominant, pulling anything short of a length, cutting with ferocity and playing with all the assuredness of a No 3 SA can definitely move forward with.
The Newlands faithful certainly appreciated two of SA’s premier batsmen being totally in control for a change. They rose in unison to applaud De Kock when he reached three figures and were gearing up to applaud Bavuma as he too closed in on his milestone. But unlike four years ago when Bavuma brought the house down at Newlands when he reached his maiden Test century, there was almost silence when Chris Jordan trapped the stylish right-hander out for lbw two runs short this time around.
It was the only displeasure on an almost perfect night for the Proteas that was set up earlier in the day by Tabraiz Shamsi. The left-arm wrist-spinner certainly showed that there is life after Imran Tahir.
Shamsi has been cast in the spotlight since Tahir’s ODI retirement after the World Cup last year and he would have been tentative about filling the big shoes of the veteran, particularly due to Pakistan-born leg-spinner’s impact on the Proteas ODI team over the past decade.
But the Titans maverick has certainly learnt from being Tahir’s understudy over the past few years by delivering a masterclass of 3/38 that restricted England to just 258/8.
Only Joe Denly (87) seemed to adapt to the conditions for the visitors, and were it not for a 91-run partnership for the seventh wicket with Chris Woakes (40), then the match could have been even more one-sided.