The next 10 months will provide the foundation upon which Kagiso Rabada hopes to build a long international career.
Barely a month past his 20th birthday, Rabada is aiming to establish himself in the national team framework – whatever the format – in what will be a busy period for the Proteas. His career arc has risen almost as rapidly as the pace at which he delivers a cricket ball – going from being a star performer for the national Under-19 side at the World Cup at the start of 2014, to making his senior international debut by the end of that year.
The speedy rise doesn’t appear to have fazed him. Cutting a relaxed figure on the eve of the South African team’s departure for Bangladesh this week, Rabada outlined the importance of the next year in terms of how his career may unfold.
“The goal is to establish myself into international cricket, but only performance will do that for me. If I prepare well, do the right things, then the performances will come.”
Hitherto his international career has been restricted to three T20 Internationals, with the wicket of Glenn Maxwell at the MCG last year, the only reward. Most famously thus far he copped a pounding from Chris Gayle in a T20 match at Newlands last summer, but moments like those serve as valuable lessons as he seeks to establish himself.
A trip to Bangladesh can hardly be described as daunting, but it will be a significantly stiffer challenge than has mostly been the case for South African teams, owing to Bangladesh’s improved performances after the World Cup.
Rabada is well aware that he will face challenges in conditions to which his talents may not be suited, but is keen to test himself.
“We went on an Under-19 tour last year to India, so I have an idea (of what to expect) and there are areas in South Africa, like East London and Paarl, where conditions are similar to the subcontinent, so I do have an idea of how it will play. Obviously you can’t bowl the same way there as you do in most of South Africa.
“The most simple thing is to adjust your length. Because it’s so slow, the ball sits up off the deck. So you need to be clever, you need to vary your pace and reverse swing obviously plays a role there,” Rabada added.
Besides the pitch conditions, trips to Bangladesh provide other challenges. As it’s not the most picturesque country it makes for a lot of down time for the players. “You are mostly confined to your hotel, because of the congestion,” said coach Russell Domingo. “You go to some countries and guys can drift off in different directions. There are benefits, especially for us on this trip. We haven’t been together for a while, and so on tours like these you find guys together at dinner a lot in the hotel, which will be good for us, especially as we also have a few new faces around.”
For Rabada that will mean a lot of time catching up with Quinton de Kock – “he used to be my friend”, chirped Rabada about De Kock, referencing the latter’s move from the Lions to provincial rivals the Titans. “But ja, I will be spending a lot of time with Quinny in Bangladesh because there is not much to do.”
South Africa’s first match of the tour is a 20-over warm-up match in Fatullah on Friday. The first of two T20 Internationals takes place Sunday in Dhaka. - The Star