CRICKET STUMPER
Temba Bavuma might be battling to find form, but do captains’ on-field contributions matter in a T20 World Cup?
Temba Bavuma has struggled for form in the past few months and his continued selection at the T20 World Cup is unjustified on performances. But he is not the first captain to struggle.
Proteas captain Temba Bavuma has been in woeful form in the ongoing T20 World Cup in Australia.
At the time of writing he had a high score of 10 and has only accumulated 14 runs in three innings. His rate of scoring has been sluggish too, striking at just more than 60.
His teammates have shown support for their skipper publicly on many occasions. Middle-order batter Aiden Markram is the latest to defend his captain.
“Every player goes through these sort of form slumps. With games that are so close to each other, it can seem a lot worse than what it is. But I think the whole team, management involved, have been there for Temba,” Markram said.
“And our ideas don’t change about his ability. We all know his ability and our team and the role that he plays, not just from batting, but also from a leadership point of view as well.
Proteas captain Temba Bavuma during the first One-Day International against India in Lucknow on 6 October 2022. (Photo: Pankaj Nangia / Gallo Images)
“I think the whole team, and I can speak on behalf of the team as we all support him. It happens to everyone. We’ve all been through it. I’ve been through it more than once, unfortunately.
“It’s always just one knock away, and that’s sort of the message that Temba has been given for the time being.”
While Bavuma’s personal form has been iffy, the Proteas’ has been brilliant at the T20 World Cup.
They have won two matches against Bangladesh (by 104 runs) and India (by five wickets) and had their third one rained out when they were on the cusp of victory against Zimbabwe.
They take on Pakistan on 3 November where they could secure passage to the semifinals with a victory. It might be the last chance for Bavuma to find form.
Read in Daily Maverick: “Rossouw rises while Bavuma’s batting woes continue”
South Africa are currently the only unbeaten side in the tournament and sit pretty atop their group, looking assured of a semifinal berth.
Bavuma’s leadership has been instrumental throughout the global showpiece, steering his charges through the pressure with composure.
Wayne Parnell (right), Quinton de Kock (middle) and Temba Bavuma chat during the T20 World Cup match against India in Perth on 30 October 2022. (Photo: Isuru Sameera Peiris / Gallo Images)
“His leadership, in my opinion, has been excellent. On-field decisions have been really good that he’s making. So I’ve got no doubt he’ll come right with the bat,” said Markram.
“And if he does, and we can get off to some good starts, I think it’s going to help our batting unit a lot, but certainly not doubting his ability at all.”
Team sport
South Africa’s other batters have stood up and been counted – in the absence of Bavuma’s runs – in the World Cup so far.
The runs have been shared across the top-order batters, with Quinton de Kock, Rilee Rossouw, David Miller and Markram each reaching at least 50 runs in a single innings so far.
“In a format like this you have to take risks, where you have to play a positive brand of cricket. It certainly helps when your (other) batters seem to be in form,” Markram said after the victory over India.
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“It does free us up a bit. It definitely does help. I did not feel like I was in form. But I suppose you get wickets like that, and it’s just about finding a way. And hopefully all the batters can take on from that going forward.”
Had these batters not found their rhythm in Australia, Bavuma’s lack of runs would be more of a factor than it is now.
South Africa’s batting line-up is strong and could arguably be stronger, if Reeza Hendricks – who seemingly can’t stop scoring runs this year – was added in place of the skipper. But runs are not the only factors in World Cup victories.
Looking back
At last year’s T20 World Cup in the UAE, Australia claimed the title without their captain, Aaron Finch, finding his best form. He scored 135 runs in seven innings, averaging at 19 with a strike rate of 116.
Those are unexceptional numbers for an opener in the shortest format. Yet, with the support and belief of his teammates, he took his side to the heights of the cricketing world and lifted the T20 World Cup trophy with his side.
At the T20 World Cup before that, in India in 2016, the West Indies struck gold with a star-studded side. Their captain, Darren Sammy, batted at No 7 and 8 and scored a cumulative eight runs in the tournament. The all-rounder also only bowled three overs in the tournament at an economy of more than 10.
Read in Daily Maverick: “‘Temba is a world-class player, he’s a brilliant leader,’ says long-time teammate Rassie van der Dussen”
His side, filled to the brim with globally recognised cricketing mavericks, rallied behind their leader and became the first team to lift the trophy twice.
The trend of captains not contributing with bat or ball but only with leadership has existed since the 1970s with England and Mike Brearley.
Brearley, like Bavuma, had an incredible pace attack, spearheaded by Bob Willis and Ian Botham. He led England from 1976 to 1981 and under his tutelage the side played 31 matches, won 18, lost only four and drew nine.
It’s an incredible record that has stood the test of time, more than 40 years later.
Temba Bavuma trains at the Sydney Cricket Ground on 2 November 2022. (Photo: Isuru Sameera Peiris / Gallo Images)
Yet, despite all his achievements as captain, Brearley had a very modest Test average of 22.88 in his 39 matches and never scored a Test 100.
Bavuma is perhaps not the long-term solution as the Proteas’ T20 captain, but he will lead the team for the duration of the tournament, barring injury, and thus far he has led the side with composure and assurance.
A captain not contributing in their primary role while their team loses is a cause for concern. However, it is strange for a captain of a winning team to be dropped, despite their lack of contribution.
As a captain, Bavuma has steered the Proteas ship through muddy waters and tricky situations. His current inability to perform tasks on the ship outside of manning the wheel should not take away from his ability to keep the side on path to the never-before-reached treasure of a cricket World Cup trophy for South Africa. DM
This debate around TB’s form, with his team mates and the media rationalising his being kept in the team because of his leadership position is getting ridiculous and is not honest. Before his so called run of poor form he never qualified for the team as a batsman based on his T20 batting rankings with Reeza Hendricks way ahead of him in the rankings and firing on all cylinders being left out is ridiculous. The proof of the pudding and what settles the debate is the fact that no one(out of 6 teams and more than 100 players) was prepared to spend any money on him for the SA T20 squads
“this settles the debate and says it all!” And then to add salt to the wound David Miller captains the Paarl Royals so clearly has the capability to captain a national squad, I wonder how many of the other captains when announced will be in the current Protea squad?
Why not ask for Temba to be officially appointed as a bail for the World cup; well perhaps not a bail rather the whole stump set-up?
The team would benefit from his on-pitch insights but without the downside of his very challenged, contributions?
Without Temba Bavuma in India, we lost horribly. He really is not a limited over player, but his captain’s credentials are definitely strong.
Following our loss to Pakistan today and although TB made 36 how does everyone feel about Tb’s leadership abilities now? To let Pakistan off the hook the way we did must be laid squarely at the leaders door. But maybe we can rationalise it away by saying it’s just a Leadership Form slump!