Chris Morris: Yay or Nay?
Mercurial all-rounder has the X-factor but his selection could be disastrous for Proteas
THE COLLINS ENGLISH DICTIONARY defines X-factor as follows: “An unknown or unexplained element that makes something more interesting or valuable.”
And because the ‘element’ is unknown or unexplained, it also makes everyone wary. South Africa got burned by Wayne Parnell’s ‘X-factor’ in 2015. He played just once, conceded 85 runs at the MCG against India and was not seen again in that tournament. Chris Morris is this year’s Wayne Parnell. He bowls fast, can catch flies, is athletic and aware in the outfield and he hits
IF YOU are an ardent supporter of the Delhi Capitals, and a keen observer of the Indian Premier League (IPL), then Chris Morris would be lining up at The Oval for the Proteas against the hosts, England, on May 30.
But unfortunately, we have seen over the years that Morris has been unable to replicate his splendid IPL form for the national team.
Despite debuting at the Champions Trophy back in 2013 already, the 31-year-old all-rounder still only averages 19.65 with the bat and a bloated 40.42 with the ball across 34 ODI’s. There will always be the ball a mile. But like Parnell, the good days are too often outweighed by bad ones. If his bad days were less bad, Morris would probably have been confirmed for the World Cup already. But his bad days are truly terrifying and Faf du Plessis and Ottis Gibson demand a far greater measure of control and consistency. Hence they’re willing to rely on Anrich Nortje, even though his batting and fielding aren’t as good as Morris’. And yet it’s because of those wild fluctuations in form that Morris just feels like he could be a difference maker in England.
Morris has the ability to swing
those who point to the X-factor that he possesses, but I prefer to call that inconsistency.
It was the same with Wayne Parnell.
They simply cannot string two matches together, and that is crucial, particularly with the format of this World Cup returning to a league phase. South Africa went with Parnell ahead of the more dependable Ryan McLaren to the last World Cup, and that plan backfired tremendously. This time the selectors have to choose between Morris and the reliable Dwaine Pretorius.
The latter has certainly answered a match in an over or with a spell. And he has shown his ‘finishing’ qualities with the bat for the Titans on a number of occasions and most memorably for the Proteas in as intense a game as one can get in a bilateral series; he smashed 62 off 38 balls in the fourth ODI at the Wanderers in 2016 against England to square the five match series. Morris may not be a ‘starter’ to begin with at the World Cup, but he’s the type of player you’d like to have in your back pocket.
Given the entire package, it’d be nice to have him in England, because you just never know.
every question posed to him over the course of the summer and would be a worthy selection. A major factor counting against Morris, too, is the fact that he has been injury prone over the past couple of seasons and there is a real fear that he may break down over the course of the six-week tournament.
“The biggest problem for Morris is his fitness,” Proteas coach Ottis Gibson has said in the past. “Not in terms of general fitness, but in terms of staying on the park. In the last three years he has had a lot of injury issues, more so than cricketing issues.”