Africa-Press – South-Africa. The Proteas have no qualms nor any feelings of panic allowing skipper Temba Bavuma to regain his form in their two warm-up matches before commencing their ICC T20 World Cup campaign later this month.
Under severe pressure from the outside, the diminutive right-hander missed out on vital time in the middle when he was ruled out of the last two ODIs against India after contracting a “mild infection”, a frustrating turn of events for a man who’s only made 27 runs in his last six international innings.
Yet head coach Mark Boucher believes a change of scenery in Australia, where the showpiece tournament is taking place, could be the tonic for Bavuma to be more relaxed about his own game.
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“Temba was out sick. As you know in India, you can sometimes just wake up and feel unwell. That’s what happened to [Keshav Maharaj and Tabraiz Shamsi] too, we had no other choice [than to rest them]. Simple as that. They weren’t feeling great,” he said.
“Temba would’ve liked to get some form before the World Cup and it was unfortunate that he got sick for the last two ODIs. It would’ve been the perfect opportunity for him top get in and find some form.”
However, Down Under’s more easy-paced surfaces could be a boon.
“We do still have two warm-up games at our disposal and I believe the conditions will suit Temba a bit more in Australia. We’ll try getting him back up and running again, getting him in the nets and letting him get comfortable, maybe a knock or two before the tournament to see where he’s at.
“He’s the captain and we treat him as such,” said Boucher.
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South Africa play New Zealand and Bangladesh next week in tune-ups that strike a nice balance between being less demanding and competitive.
At the other end of the spectrum, the Proteas will also hope Maharaj’s illness doesn’t derail his excellent form over the past few weeks, a period where he’s arguably overtaken Shamsi as the side’s first-choice white-ball tweaker.
“It’s easy to say that [we missed Keshav in that final ODI], but we didn’t lose that game because of the bowling. It was the batting,” said Boucher.
“If Kesh was available to play, he would’ve. He’s our No 1 spinner in limited overs cricket on form currently. Unfortunately, you wake up in the morning and you’re not feeling great, in these conditions it’s quite tough to push a guy who’s struggling to get out of bed.
“Ifs and buts, it doesn’t make a difference right now. We’re just hoping he gets better real soon to put up his hand for selection at the T20 World Cup.”
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