DURBAN - Faf du Plessis and David Miller shared a crucial 117-run stand for South Africa’s fifth wicket in Durban on Wednesday, one which ultimately put the second One-Day International beyond Sri Lanka’s reach.
In the midst of that stand, the buzzword between the pair had been “no risk”, as they looked to rebuild, and lay the platform for an assault in the final 10 overs. The plan had been going along nicely, until the beginning of the 36th over, when Miller decided to start writing his own script.
“We had spoken at the end of the previous over, and the message had been to keep knocking it around, and not take any risks,” confirmed Miller.
With that resolution firmly in mind, the left-handed batsmen then decided to smash Dhananjaya Da Silva’s first two balls of the over into the South Stand, racing from 39 to 51. As he raised his bat for the half-century, his slightly confused batting partner congratulated him, and then had a quiet word.
“So, what was the point of that discussion,” Du Plessis smirked, quietly happy to see his young partner take charge.
“He makes it look easy, doesn’t he,” Du Plessis said of Miller.
“I feel like I am hitting baby sixes compared to him. It’s just great knowing you have a guy who can shift gears like that, and he can adapt his game to any situation. We are very happy with the way he is playing.”
Miller admitted that the penny had dropped, funnily enough when he was dropped from the national side as well. A stint in the A side tour to Australia gave him a chance to sort out a few things, away from the uncompromising glare of international cricket.
“I had a few technical issues I needed to sort out. The penny dropped then, and I think experience also comes into it. I’ve got four centuries for South Africa now, and I just want to keep going,” he smiled.
Miller also saluted his partner in crime, man-of-the-match Du Plessis, who laid the foundation for him to flourish later.
“He is playing very well. He is a real leader on and off the field, even though he is not captain. He brings a lot of maturity to the team, and gives us that strong foundation,” Miller said.
Miller, for so long labelled as nothing but a finisher, has shown a new side to his game in recent months. There is a maturity there, a hunger not to provide the highlights, but also be there in the trenches, setting up the situation for the carnage that comes later.
It was a second successive century at Kingsmead, his real cricketing home, and both have seen him at the crease under pressure.
“It is very comforting (knowing that we have Chris Morris, Wayne Parnell and Andile Phehlukwayo to come), but we knew it was up to us to set it up for those last 10 overs.”
The depth of the South African batting card fills the top order with as much freedom to dare, as it provides the lower order the belief that no target is safe.
But, somewhere in the middle of those two mindsets, the need for a bridge between run-collecting and havoc-wreaking always remains.
For a long time, the verdict was out on whether Miller could perform that role. Recent evidence suggests he can do
just that, and infinitely more when he is set.
Though he is now out for up to 10 days with a finger injury, Miller will be chuffed with what he has shown over the past few months.
He will be looking to quickly mend his mitts and bash his way into a 2017 that is laden with possibilities.
Those possibilities, as luck would have it, also leave the door open for Miller to veer from the script, and let his explosive instincts take over.