South Africa's ODI struggles continue as key players miss out before Champions Trophy

The Proteas have had a stuttering preparation for the Champions Trophy, losing both their tri-series matches against New Zealand and Pakistan — and losing both by six wickets.

On both occasions, South Africa set competitive totals (304 and 352) but the flat wickets in Pakistan and largely toothless bowling saw the totals chased fairly easily.

This continues a struggling display in the 50-over format by South Africa over the past year.

Since the 2023 Cricket World Cup, South Africa have played 14 one-day international matches, losing 10 with only four wins. Two of those wins have come against Ireland, with one each against India and Afghanistan.

The side are also on a six-match losing streak in the format going into their opening Champions Trophy clash against Afghanistan next Friday.

But coach Rob Walter has in all of those matches either not had access to his best players or opted to select a younger, less experienced crop of players.

The trend has continued in the tri-series with Aiden Markram, Kagiso Rabada, Marco Jansen, David Miller and Rassie van der Dussen— all members of the ODI side’s best XI — unavailable for selection despite the start of the Champions Trophy being less than a week away.

“It’s just availability,” Walter said about not playing his best players in the build-up to the Champions Trophy.

“A large portion of our players were involved in the SA20. The playoffs were a little too close to the start of the competition (tri-series) for them to be available. Hence we gave some other players an opportunity.”

Scheduling issues

The scheduling of the SA20 has, for a second consecutive year, affected the national team. Last year, South Africa sent a severely depleted side to New Zealand to contest a two-match Test series — which saw South Africa lose a Test series against the Black Caps for the first time ever — in order for the SA20 to have its star players available.

This year, the SA20 was squeezed between a Test series against Pakistan and the start of the Champions Trophy. The second Test match at Newlands ended on 6 January, while the SA20 started on 8 January in Gqeberha.

Player of the Test Series Jansen’s Sunrisers Eastern Cape took on Rabada’s MI Cape Town. Rabada was rested by MI while Jansen strapped up in orange for the Sunrisers.

“We had to play a Test match and then fly, and the next day guys had to play, and that’s absolutely ridiculous,” Rabada told Daily Maverick.

“We played two Test matches and then two days later, after bowling for so long, a guy like Marco Jansen’s playing.

“Other players (like Tony de Zorzi and Corbin Bosch) had to fly straight from the SA20 final, flying the next morning and going to Pakistan, which is also not very acceptable when the same thing happened last year with the Test matches booked off in New Zealand. That doesn’t make it any easier.

“That’s a problem that needs to be solved.”

Good prep?

Does the head coach feel the preparation for the Champions Trophy has been good despite missing several key players?

“Absolutely,” he said when probed after the team’s loss to Pakistan on Wednesday. “We have more information than we had before both for Lahore and Karachi.

“From that point of view, to have a good understanding of conditions is a win, and something that we’ll lean on as we move forward. For those in the group who are going to be part of the Champions Trophy, it was good preparation for them.

“Also for our younger guys who’ve come across and played. Matthew Breetzke we’ve seen really stand up, which stands him in good stead moving ahead.

“There’s plenty of learnings for the younger guys who have not been to Pakistan before and played cricket in these conditions.”

While getting the right players on the field has been a struggle for South Africa, they do have an advantage — along with New Zealand — of familiarity of conditions in Pakistan prior to the start of the Champions Trophy. DM