Henry Davids says Temba Bavuma struggles to give the Proteas momentum during the powerplay.
In four matches of the current T20I series against India, South Africa have been 61-2, 29-3, 38-2 and 35-2 after the first six overs of their innings.
In those matches, opener Bavuma has scored 10 off eight balls, 35 off 30, eight off 10 and eight off 11 (retired hurt). His 61 runs in the series have been scored at a strike rate of 103.38.
“Temba Bavuma is not explosive and aggressive enough,” Davids told Rapport newspaper when asked about the Proteas’ powerplay problems.
“They describe him as someone who collects runs. But when the inner ring is so loaded with fielders, you need to hit over the inner ring. He does not do that.
“A batsman like Rassie van der Dussen also starts slowly.
“It’s different with India,” added Davids, who played two ODIs and nine T20Is for South Africa. “Ruturaj Gaikwad and Ishan Kishan get carte blanche to play aggressively from the start. That gives the innings wings.”
Bavuma is in doubt for Sunday’s fifth and deciding T20I in Bengaluru after suffering an elbow injury during Friday’s match in Rajkot, which the Proteas lost by 82 runs.
