Bavuma, Elgar restoring faith in Proteas

SOUTH African cricket seems to be growing up at last. After years of being in a “transitional phase” due to the retirement of their “superstars” this fledgling team has seemingly found a place of contentment.

This might all be shaken to its core once again when coach Mark Boucher undergoes his disciplinary hearings with the threat of dismissal very real.

On the field, though, this home summer has been the turnaround that has long been craved for with much of it due to the on-field leadership.

In both the Test and limited-overs formats the teams have captains – Dean Elgar and Temba Bavuma – that both have the full respect of their dressing room and that of the opposition.

The result has been two series wins over a powerhouse Indian team with only today’s dead rubber third ODI remaining at Newlands.

A feature of this group of players is the maturity they have shown. Besides the official captains, there are a host of leaders that drive the team forward such as Tabraiz Shamsi and Rassie van

der Dussen.

Bavuma paid testament to the fact that he has able deputies that provide support.

“I am fortunate that there’s a lot of cricket brains in the team. That’s a good thing. Sometimes it can be a bad thing, they can confuse you on the field!” he quipped.

A feature of the leadership group has been the way they have shielded the younger players from the outside noise to focus on simply performing to the best of their abilities.

Marco Jansen was a standout in his debut Test series along with the ever-improving Keegan Petersen, while Janneman Malan’s consistency in the ODI arena has been remarkable.

Malan, who was named in the ICC ODI Team of 2021 along with Van der Dussen, struck 91 at Boland Park on Friday to play a leading role in the Proteas clinching the series.

Considering that Boucher’s pending trial had consumed the build-up to the game, it was a considerable effort from the 25-year-old to block out any distractions.

“I don’t want to sound ignorant or uninterested but it’s a big series we have in front of us. We can’t have many distractions in terms of personal mindsets,” Malan said. “I just try and focus on the game, focus on getting the team in winning positions and playing for everyone in the team and the country.”

Regardless of today’s result at Newlands, nothing can take away the shine of what this Proteas group has achieved this summer, particularly with Bavuma admitting that “no one had much faith in us”.

The Test side will depart for New Zealand shortly where the official Test World Champions lay in wait.