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South Africa beat a pathetic Pakistan by 8 wickets in the first game of the ODI series at the Sheik Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi on Friday.

South Africa won by 8 wickets (with 63 balls remaining)
Pakistan: 203 (Hafeez 68, Younis 54, Tsotsobe 4-27)
South Africa: 207 for 2 (Kallis 66 retd hurt, de Villiers 51)


The Proteas won their 10th ODI in a row which includes wins over India, the West Indies and Zimbabwe.

PAKISTAN INNINGS

Pakistan won the toss and elected to bat. Lonwabo Tsotsobe was the only South African pace bowler to hit the right areas consistently early on, and much of his hard work was undone by some wayward bowling from his teammates.

After Tsotsobe had removed Asad Shafiq for 19, Mohammad Hafeez and Younis Khan set about resurrecting the innings. They played intelligently, rotating the strike well and putting away the bad balls which came at regular intervals.

Johan Botha bowled well once again, but the settled batsmen had no trouble picking up singles off most balls. Botha got his reward for being persistent, breaking the Hafeez-Khan partnership.

It was then Tsotsobe who came back for his second spell and was rewarded with 3 wickets to finish with a career best 4-27 off his 10 overs.

Charl Langeveldt and Morne Morkel chipped in with some wickets, and Pakistan had gone from 140/1 to being bowled out for 203. The last 9 wickets falling for 63 runs in around 18 overs.

Once again Tsotosbe showed he can consistently bowl in the right areas, and is rewarded with plenty of wickets. He deserves a regular spot in all forms of the game and surely has proven himself?

Morne Morkel and Charl Langeveldt looked a class below Tsotsobe, and once Dale Steyn and Wayne Parnell are fit, I’d play Steyn, Tsotsobe and Parnell. It’d offer 3 genuine wicket taking bowlers who consistently take wickets, with each capable of ripping through a batting order.

At the moment, whenever Morne Morkel comes on, it releases pressure and brings about an increase in the scoring rate. He’s had enough chances, and unlike Tsotsobe, hasn’t taken his opportunities.

SOUTH AFRICAN INNINGS

Has anyone else noticed how pudgy Graeme Smith has become? He’s a liability in the field, far too slow. You certainly don’t see Ricky Ponting or Sachin Tendulkar putting on so much weight. It has started to impact his batting too, and it’s no coincidence he’s struggling to make big scores and his fitness is surely down.

Smith once again got hit on the hand, retiring hurt. Hashim Amla initially struggled against Shoabib Akhtar and was undone by Saeed Ajmal after having weathered the inital storm by the pace bowlers.

However Jacques Kallis was unperturbed, batting splendidly as he has done for many years. In partnership with AB de Villiers, they scored fluently before de Villiers was out for 51 to leave South Africa at 147/2.

Kallis was eventually forced to retire hurt for 66 as he suffered from painful cramps.

JP Duminy and Colin Ingram saw the Proteas home to finish at 207 for 2 in the 40th over.

GOOD SERIES START

Once again Pakistan blew a good start. The emergence of T20 cricket has seen their normally fragile batsmen become even worse. Mind you, one can never tell just whether the Pakistanis are even trying to play to the best of their ability, and collapses such as they always make you wonder.

South Africa take a 1-0 lead in the series, and once again Pakistan are on the back foot. The next match takes place at the same venue on Sunday.

South Africa beat Pakistan by 6 wickets, with 8 balls remaining, in the second of the their 2 T20′s played in Abu Dhabi, to take the series 2-0.

Having won the toss, Pakistan chose to bat and once again started poorly.

All the South African bowlers were tidy, and rewarded with good figures. However it was Lonwabo Tsotsobe who one again made the early breakthroughs.

At 39/5, Pakistan were always going to struggle having lost too many wickets at regular intervals to threaten with a decent score.

Chasing only 121 for victory, the Proteas got off to a better start than the previous day, until Bosman got undone by Shahid Afridi in the 7th over.

AB de Villiers and Graeme Smith put on 25 to consolidate the Proteas position, but with 2 quick wickets, and Smith’s departure for 38 to leave South Africa at 68/3, the asking rate had climbed to 7.95 and getting away from the Proteas.

When Colin Ingram was out for 31, he had effectively won the game for the Proteas, taking 16 out of the 18 runs off Shoabib Akhtar in the 17th over.

JP Duminy was once again very good in seeing South Africa get to their target as he ended unbeaten on 22.

The Proteas were solid in all aspects, but possibly just need to ensure their top orer batting improves for the ODI series. With the return of Hashim Amla and Jacques Kallis, they’ll give the solidity needed for the longer format of the limited overs game.

Hashim Amla now has the highest ODI batting average from players of all the major cricket playing nations.

The Proteas, for the first time ever, have the world’s number 1 (AB de Villiers) and 2 (Hashim Amla) ranked ODI batsmen.

Amla also has the second highest ODI career batting average. Amla’s average (like his test stats) is on the increase, surprising given his temperment and technique are more ideally suited to test cricket.

Amla’s ODI average is now 57.67, still some way behind RN ten Doeschate of the Netherlands who averages 68.55!

However it is still considerably higher than Michael bevan’s 53.58 who is 3rd. There are only 2 others in the 50′s and the next highest is Zaheer Abbas with 47.62

With time on his side, could Amla be the player who breaks multiple records and ends up with the highest career average of the major cricket playing nations?I believe he could, he has a fantastic attitude, and can perform the anchor role every side needs very successfully, playing within his limitations with ease.

Unlike many non-subcontinental batsmen, he is also fortunate that he has the game to succeed in those countries, and bump up his average on batter-friendly pitches.

I belive we could see both his ODI and test averages increase in the next few years, and see him break many records!

South Africa beat Pakistan in the first T2o match in Abu Dhabi by 6 wickets and 10 balls remaining.

With 2 T20′s, 5 ODI’s and 2 test matches, it was important for South Africa to win the first match if they seriously want to reclaim their number 1 position in the test and ODI rankings.

The Proteas started off brilliantly with the ball, Lonwabo Tsotsobe showing how dangerous he is as a wicket taking bowler as he grabbed 2 early wickets. He was ably supported by the Morkel brothers, and during the middle of the innings by Johan Botha.

Pakistan were disappointing in only scoring 119, a total that was always going to be hard to defend.

Their only option was to try and bowl South Africa out, and they gave themselves a chance when Shoaib Akhtar picked up 2 wickets in an over. When Smith went soon after, the Proteas were in trouble at 26/3 with a largely inexperienced middle order.

JP Duminy (41) showed how calm and collected he is under pressure, playing superbly to see South Africa set up for victory. His dismissal enabled Dave Miller the opportunity of a little cameo in partnership with Colin Ingram who played brilliantly for his unbeaten 46.

The match highlighted some of the talent the Proteas have at their disposal, talent I think has taken too long to be given a chance with has-beens like Herschelle Gibbs, and Mark Boucher given too many opportunities.

I would be excited to see Tsotsobe open the bowling with Dale Steyn as it would produce a real wicket taking threat for the opposition batsmen. Then Johan Botha can tie things up in the middle overs.

There is much to be excited about for the Proteas, and the second game will see just if they can consistently dominate their opposition!

India travel to South Africa for 3 test matches, 5 ODI’s and 1 T20 in what is a battle for the top spot in World Cricket.

Whilst India currently top the ICC test rankings and are currently regarded as the best side in the world, their form outside of India and the sub-continent will determine just how great their side can be regarded.

They have never won a series in South Africa, their batsmen often struggling to come to terms with the bouncier pitches.

The series promises to be an epic battle, and it’ll be interesting to see how the Indian batting order can cope with the pace and bounce, and whether their bowling attck can trouble a settled Proteas batting lineup.

Having Gary Kirsten as coach, with in depth knowledge of South African conditions, and their players will definitely help the Indians.

However I don’t believe India are that good away from home. Sehwag has often struggled against extra bounce, and if he goes early, much depends on Sachin Tendulkar and VVS Laxman to save the Indians.

With the ball I don’t think their attack will be strong enough with not enough pacemen to utilise South African conditions. Their spinners are accurate, but not the genuine threats that will worry the Proteas who are generally quite good players of spin bowling (Shane Warne excepted).

The Proteas have a strong batting lineup with Smith, Amla, Kallis, de Villiers and Duminy all in good touch.

With the ball, Dale Steyn will be well rested and raring to reclaim more wickets, and should be well backed up by Parnell, (M) Morkel and Kallis.

It promises to be a mouth-watering contest, but overall, in home conditions, the Proteas should fancy their chances.

SOUTH AFRICA v INDIA, South Africa (Dec/Jan 2010/11):

South Africa travel to Dubai, to take on the Pakistanis in 2 T20′s, 5 one dayers, and 2 test matches.

The venue is Dubai due to the security risk of playing in Pakistan.

The Pakistanis have been troubled off the field in recent times with suspensions and match fixing allegations, but one can never discount them, especially in conditions similar to the sub-continent.

SOUTH AFRICA v PAKISTAN, Dubai (Oct/Nov 2010):

Over the last 12-18 months, Hashim Amla has shown just how good he can be and made the number 3 or opening spot his own in the Proteas batting lineup.

I first saw Amla play at the 2002 Under-19 Cricket World Cup in New Zealand, where as captain he led his team to the final. From that moment I knew he’d play for the Proteas and be a damn fine player.

It has taken Amla some time, amongst sometimes limited opportunities to make his mark on the international stage.

In 46 test matches he has scored 3383 runs, and boasts a test batting average of 45.10 with a top score of 253 not out, having also scored 10 centuries.

In 32 ODI’s, he has scored 1615 runs, with an average of 57.67 and a strike rate of 91.5 with 5 centuries.

The stats don’t tell the full story however, as Amla struggled in the initial stages of his international career, and has blossomed in the last couple of years.

Like most players of origin from the sub-continent, Amla doesn’t get very far forward at times, especially early in his innings and can be vulnerable to the swinging delivery. However once he gets his eye in, his timing is impeccable and he utilises his wrist to score freely square of the wicket on both sides of the field.

More than his technique however, it is his temperament that makes me think Amla will be one of the games greats. He is uncomplicated, and exhibits great patience and perseverance.

He remains unflustered by previous deliveries, able to concentrate on the next delivery and get on with the job at hand. He is cool, calm and collected, not even able to be perturbed by Aussie sledging!

I have no doubt Amla will score a mile more runs. His average will improve in test cricket, and he’ll score many more centuries in all forms of the game.

The Proteas ensured a clean sweep in the 3 match one day series against Zimbabwe with a record breaking win in the last match.

With a slightly depleted side giving some newcomers a chance to show what they are capable of, the Proteas will be pleased to get the 3-0 result, and secure a record breaking 272 run victory in the final match to signal they are on the right path ahead of next year’s World Cup.

The Proteas showed their batting is strong, with Hashim Amla and AB de Villiers both scoring 2 centuries in the series, and JP duminy 1.

A possible criticism is that Graeme Smith failed to post a decent score in his 3 innings. Other than that the batting looks solid, and it will serve the Proteas well that 3 sizeable totals were scored, including 2 innings over 350 when setting a score.

The bowling got better as the series evolved, possibly lacking the real strike power without Dale Steyn, and the control and variety that will be needed on the sub-continent for the World Cup.

However with 2 further series before the World Cup, it gives the Proteas time to work on their problem areas and fine tune their strategy.

I am sure that with the return of Jaques Kallis and Dale Steyn, this side will go to another level, as they get the chance to prove with a series against Pakistan looming.

Results – South Africa v Zimbabwe ODI’s October 2010

1st ODI: South Africa v Zimbabwe at Bloemfontein – Oct 15, 2010

South Africa 351/6 (50 ov); Zimbabwe 287/6 (50 ov)

South Africa won by 64 runs


2nd ODI: South Africa v Zimbabwe at Potchefstroom – Oct 17, 2010

Zimbabwe 268 (48.2 ov); South Africa 273/2 (39 ov)

South Africa won by 8 wickets (with 66 balls remaining)


3rd ODI: South Africa v Zimbabwe at Benoni – Oct 22, 2010

South Africa 399/6 (50 ov); Zimbabwe 127 (29 ov)

South Africa won by 272 runs