New Proteas bowlers expected to flourish

Russell Domingo, Coach of South Africa during the South Africa Training ahead of the 2014 Sunfoil Test Series between South Africa and Australia at Newlands, Cape Town on 28 February 2014 ©Chris Ricco/BackpagePix

Russell Domingo, Coach of South Africa during the South Africa Training ahead of the 2014 Sunfoil Test Series between South Africa and Australia at Newlands, Cape Town on 28 February 2014 ©Chris Ricco/BackpagePix

Published Jul 1, 2015

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Johannesburg - With a number of new names in the Proteas’ Test squad to face Bangladesh later this month, coach Russell Domingo says it could be the perfect opportunity for the next generation of South African bowlers to shine.

Spinner Aaron Phangiso and tear-away quick Kagiso Rabada are the uncapped Test bowlers in the line-up, while fellow tweaker Simon Harmer will be looking to further cement his place in the new-look Proteas setup. Harmer made his debut for South Africa in the New Year’s Test against the West Indies in Cape Town, where he returned outstanding match figures of 7/153.

Now with the first Test in Chittagong set for July 21, Domingo could well select a vastly different bowling line-up in the slow and low conditions they will likely encounter.

“It’s a great opportunity for our next tier of bowlers to stake a claim. It’s important that we develop the next tier,” said Domingo.

“If Dale [Steyn] and Morne [Morkel] are consistently playing Test cricket with Vernon [Philander], it doesn’t give much opportunity to the next tier of bowlers. A tour like this gives us the opportunity. It’s going to be a tough tour for them with the crowd, the weather, the nature of the wicket and the way Bangladesh are playing. It’s going to be a tough tour for bowlers, but a great test of their character.”

Rabada, 20, now has 14 first-class matches to his name and he has already achieved an average of 22. The lanky Lions fast bowler has already made his debut for the Proteas on the T20 stage. In early 2014, Rabada rose to fame as the stand-out bowler in South Africa’s Under-19 World Cup winning side.

“It’s always exciting to get some young blood into sides, new energy and new ideas and guys that are receptive to listen and learn from people,” said Domingo.

“Change is always a good thing. We know what we’ve got in the experience of Dale, Morne, Vernon, it’s always great to get freshness.”

Bangladesh come off a 2-1 ODI series win over India in Dhaka, and could prove difficult opposition for the Proteas.

“Their seam bowling has improved. They are picking four frontline seamers. They have changed that mindset. They are playing a lot more aggressively with the bat. Tamim Iqbal sets the tone. They seem to have really good energy and belief in their side at the moment. They’ve combined a new belief with a new set of skills which has made them much more effective and much more dangerous,” said Domingo.

“I think the wickets will be typical sub-continent wickets. They will know we also have four quicks. If they prepare wickets that are going to suit fast bowling, it plays very much into our hands.”

While the Test side was still taking shape with the younger players coming through, Domingo expected to find out his best T20 team in the upcoming two-match T20 series starting on Sunday. The emphasis would be on finding the right combinations for the T20 World Cup in India early next year.

“I’m pretty happy with the way the side has reshaped and remodelled considering we’ve lost some iconic players. We’ve got a new Test captain. Our Test cricket is still very much in a transition. Our ODI side has played really good cricket over the last year. Our T20 side takes a lot of priority now because we haven’t placed a lot of emphasis on it. You can anticipate us playing a full strength T20 side going into the World Cup.”

ANA

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