Failures of leadership, a lack of temperament, technical and tactical ineptitude. It was the same old South African World Cup story, unfolding under the watch of an incompetent captain, Temba Bavuma, writes RYAN VREDE.
Already there are those calling this defeat “brave”. There could not be a more flawed characterisation of a performance that saw South Africa crash out of the World Cup. You don’t get to fold in the most fundamental ways and have the benefit of having your effort called brave. It was an abject failure by every meaningful metric.
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This feels all too familiar in the worst ways. It is made more painful by the fact that the Proteas had the measure of their opponents, having beaten them in four of their six encounters this year.
This Australian team doesn’t stand up in comparison to others who’ve contested and won this tournament. They have mongrel but don’t carry the imposing aura their predecessors did. Yet they were made to look like champions in waiting by a South African side that became a shadow of themself under pressure.
The semi-final looked over as a contest when a batting lineup that had scored more than 300 four times at the tournament – including against Australia in the league phase – was four down for nothing. Then David Miller revived hope with a brilliant century. 212 posted. Game on.
However, skipper Temba Bavuma then made his biggest contribution to the tournament. His inexplicable persistence with Marco Jansen and Kagiso Rabada, who went for 60 runs in six overs, ultimately cost his side victory.
His leadership has been cited as a reason for his retention, despite his dreadful batting form. Yet it is abundantly clear that he doesn’t have the temperament or talent, as a batsman or captain, to withstand the pressures of a World Cup. A bilateral series, sure. But not a marquee tournament where pressure is ever-present.
It didn’t take a tactical genius to know that spin was going to be their most potent weapon. In Keshav Maharaj, they have the world’s top-ranked bowler. He didn’t bowl until the 15th over. In Tabraiz Shamsi they have a former top-ranked ODI bowler. He didn’t bowl until the 14th over. Aiden Markram broke the opening partnership and went for just 16 in four overs. He wouldn’t bowl again until the 40th over.
South Africa made it to the semi-finals despite Bavuma, not because of him, as many apologists argue. He has overseen two World Cups that featured defeats to the Netherlands. Two where he has betrayed the loyalty of his coaches.
There have been other Proteas captains who’ve failed at World Cups. But none made such a significant contribution to their exit.
Head coach Rob Walter has got a zero return on his investment from Bavuma. His legacy may be defined by that investment. He is solely in charge of selection and willfully picked an injured, out-of-form captain. That is an indictment of his competence.
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A cricket team reflects the most prominent attributes their coach and captain possess. In this context, except David Miller, the Proteas’ batters portrayed Walter and Bavuma as mental dwarves, absent of any courage in the face of adversity. Quinton de Kock and Markram were reckless, Rassie van der Dussen technically deficient, while Heinrich Klaasen and Jansen got out to Travis Head, a wicketkeeper who occasionally bowls off-spin.
Bavuma, who knicked off for zero, four balls into his innings, has a future in ODI cricket. But that future must not be as a captain.
This team, laden with players who are unlikely to make it to the 2027 ODI World Cup, must evolve. The most critical dimension of that evolution must be a captain who leads through performance, is tactically astute, and has a presence on and off the field.
That’s for the future. The present is a dark and familiar space. Where there was hope, now only despair brought on by another group of South African players for whom the moment was too big.
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Photo: Gareth Copley/Getty Images
