The South African national cricket team, nicknamed the Proteas (after South Africa's national flower, the king Protea), represents South Africa in international. It is administered by Cricket South Africa. South Africa is a full member of the International Cricket Council with Test and One Day International status.
On 20 August 2012, South Africa became top rank team in test cricket for the first time. 8 days later, on 28 August 2012, it became the first team to top the rankings in all three formats of the game.
Cricket is the second most popular sport in South Africa, and is popular among English-speaking as well as Afrikans-speaking whites, and the Asian/Muslim community. South Africa is a leading cricket-playing nation in the world, and is one of 10 countries sanctioned by the International Cricket Council (ICC) to play Test Cricket.
It also hosted the 2003 Cricket World Cup and the inaugural World Twenty20 in 2007.
Current squad
The South African Cricket ODI, Test, T20 Team List given below:-
On 20 August 2012, South Africa became top rank team in test cricket for the first time. 8 days later, on 28 August 2012, it became the first team to top the rankings in all three formats of the game.
Cricket is the second most popular sport in South Africa, and is popular among English-speaking as well as Afrikans-speaking whites, and the Asian/Muslim community. South Africa is a leading cricket-playing nation in the world, and is one of 10 countries sanctioned by the International Cricket Council (ICC) to play Test Cricket.
It also hosted the 2003 Cricket World Cup and the inaugural World Twenty20 in 2007.
Current squad
The South African Cricket ODI, Test, T20 Team List given below:-
T20 Captain: Faf du Plessis
Coach : Russell Domingo
Coaching staff
Name | Batting style | Bowling style | Forms |
HASHIM AMLA | R- H | RIGHT-ARM MEDIUM | TEST, ODI, T20I |
FAF DU PLESSIS | R- H | RIGHT-ARM LEG BREAK | TEST, ODI, T20I |
TEMBA BAVUMA | R- H | RIGHT-ARM MEDIUM | TEST |
DEAN ELGAR | L- H | LEFT ARM ORTHODOX | TEST, ODI |
REEZA HENDRICKS | R- H | RIGHT-ARM MEDIUM | T20I |
DAVID MILLER | L- H | RIGHT-ARM OFF BREAK | ODI, T20I |
JUSTIN ONTONG | R- H | RIGHT-ARM OFF-BREAK | T20I |
RILEE ROSSOUW | L- H | RIGHT-ARM OFF BREAK | ODI, T20I |
STIAAN VAN ZYL | L- H | RIGHT-ARM MEDIUM | TEST |
AB DE VILLIERS | R- H | RIGHT-ARM MEDIUM | TEST, ODI, T20I |
QUINTON DE KOCK | L- H | TEST, ODI, T20I | |
MORNÉ VAN WYK | R- H | T20I | |
DANE VILAS | R- H | TEST | |
FARHAAN BEHARDIEN | R- H | RIGHT-ARM MEDIUM | ODI, T20I |
JP DUMINY | L- H | RIGHT-ARM OFF BREAK | TEST, ODI, T20I |
ALBIE MORKEL | L- H | RIGHT-ARMMEDIUM-FAST | T20I |
DAVID WIESE | R- H | RIGHT-ARMMEDIUM-FAST | ODI, T20I |
KYLE ABBOTT | R- H | RIGHT-ARM FAST–MEDIUM | TEST, ODI, T20I |
MARCHANT DE LANGE | R- H | RIGHT-ARM FAST | ODI, T20I |
MORNÉ MORKEL | L- H | RIGHT-ARM FAST | TEST, ODI, T20I |
CHRIS MORRIS | R- H | RIGHT-ARM FAST-MEDIUM | TEST, ODI, T20I |
WAYNE PARNELL | L- H | LEFT-ARM MEDIUM-FAST | ODI, T20I |
VERNON PHILANDER | R- H | RIGHT-ARM FAST–MEDIUM | TEST, ODI |
KAGISO RABADA | L- H | RIGHT-ARM FAST | TEST, ODI, T20I |
DALE STEYN | R- H | RIGHT-ARM FAST | TEST, ODI |
SIMON HARMER | R- H | RIGHT-ARM OFF-BREAK | TEST |
EDDIE LEIE | R- H | RIGHT-ARM LEG BREAK | T20I |
DANE PIEDT | R- H | RIGHT-ARM OFF-BREAK | TEST |
AARON PHANGISO | R- H | LEFT ARM ORTHODOX | ODI, T20I |
IMRAN TAHIR | R- H | RIGHT-ARM LEG BREAK | TEST, ODI, T20I |
South Africa Cricket | |
Test status acquired | 1889 |
First Test match | v England at Crusaders Ground, Port Elizabeth, 12–13 March 1889 |
Captain | AB de Villiers (Test &ODI) Faf du Plessis (T20I) |
Coach | Russell Domingo |
Current ICC Test,ODI and T20I ranking | 6th (Test) 4th(ODI) 4th (T20I) [1] |
All-time best ICCTest, ODI and T20Iranking | 1st (Test) 1st (ODI) 1st (T20I) [2] |
Test matches – This year | 400 3 |
Last Test match | v England atSuperSport Park,Centurion; 22–26 January 2016 |
Wins/losses – This year | 145/134 1/1 |
As of 28 January 2016 | |
Coaching staff
· Head Coach: Russell Domingo
· Assistant coach: Adrian Birrell
· Batting coach: Neil McKenzie
· Bowling Coach: Charl Langeveldt
· Spin Bowling Coach: Claude Henderson
· Mental Conditioning Coach: Paddy Upton
· Performance analyst : Prasanna Agoram
Governing body
Formerly known as the United Cricket Board of South Africa, Cricket South Africa is the governing body for professional and amateur cricket in South Africa.
South Africa is a full member of the International Cricket Council and African Cricket Association with Test and One Day International status
In the wonderful world of cricket, South Africa became a Test playing nation since 1888. They started their journey in the world of cricket with a two-Test series against England in 1888-89 under the captaincy of Owen Dunnell.
As the years ticked by, they became a force to reckon with. In the 1900s their militia of googly bowlers foxed the Englishmen into defeat. By 1950s, they had a competitive unit. In 1952-53, under the able stewardship of Jack Cheetham, they drew a Test series against the formidable Australian setup.
It was in 1969-70 though that they touched exalted heights in the world of cricket. With the likes of Barry Richards, Trevor Goddard, Graeme Pollock, Peter Pollock, Mike Procter, Eddie Barlow, Lee Irvine playing for them, and Ali Bacher leading the side, they bestroded Australia and won the series 4-0.
However, in 1970 they were suspended due to their policy of apartheid. After 21 years, South Africa came back into the international fold by playing a One-Day International series against India. In 1992, South Africa played their first Test against West Indies at Barbados.
They had revolutionised the 1990s with their superlative fielding, with Jonty Rhodes leading the way. They were hit hard by match-fixing, but have managed to turn things around. However, they have not yet won an ICC event. They have been knocked out during the business end of the tournament (most tragically during in the 1999 World Cup semi-final).
Yet, South African fans would be proud of the fact that in August 2012, they became the first nation to be ranked number one across all formats.
The salient feature of South African cricket has been their all-rounders: from Aubrey Faulkner to Jacques Kallis, one champion after another have ensured that they have remained a formidable outfit from Day One.
As the years ticked by, they became a force to reckon with. In the 1900s their militia of googly bowlers foxed the Englishmen into defeat. By 1950s, they had a competitive unit. In 1952-53, under the able stewardship of Jack Cheetham, they drew a Test series against the formidable Australian setup.
It was in 1969-70 though that they touched exalted heights in the world of cricket. With the likes of Barry Richards, Trevor Goddard, Graeme Pollock, Peter Pollock, Mike Procter, Eddie Barlow, Lee Irvine playing for them, and Ali Bacher leading the side, they bestroded Australia and won the series 4-0.
However, in 1970 they were suspended due to their policy of apartheid. After 21 years, South Africa came back into the international fold by playing a One-Day International series against India. In 1992, South Africa played their first Test against West Indies at Barbados.
They had revolutionised the 1990s with their superlative fielding, with Jonty Rhodes leading the way. They were hit hard by match-fixing, but have managed to turn things around. However, they have not yet won an ICC event. They have been knocked out during the business end of the tournament (most tragically during in the 1999 World Cup semi-final).
Yet, South African fans would be proud of the fact that in August 2012, they became the first nation to be ranked number one across all formats.
The salient feature of South African cricket has been their all-rounders: from Aubrey Faulkner to Jacques Kallis, one champion after another have ensured that they have remained a formidable outfit from Day One.
History
The South African cricket team toured England in 1947. At Nottingham, Captain Alan Melvilleand vice-captain, Dudley Nourse achieved a Test match record for a third wicket partnership of 319. The following year Nourse, 38-year-old captain of Natal, was appointed Captain for the 1948 MCC Test matches in South Africa.
In 1970, the ICC voted to suspend South Africa from international cricket indefinitely because of its government's policy of apartheid, a policy which led them to play only against the white nations (England, Australia, New Zealand), and field only white players. This decision excluded players such as Graeme Pollock, Barry Richards and Mike Procter from partaking in international Test Cricket. It would also cause the emigration of future stars like Allan Lamb and Robin Smith, who both played for England, and Kepler Wessels, who initially played for Australia, before returning to South Africa.
The ICC reinstated South Africa as a Test nation in 1991 after the deconstruction of apartheid, and the team played its first sanctionedmatch since 1970 (and its first ever One-Day International) against Indiain Calcutta on 10 November 1991. South Africa's first test match after re-admission was against the West Indies in April 1992. The match was played in Bridgetown, Barbados and South Africa lost by 52 runs.
Since South Africa have been reinstated they have achieved mixed success, and hosted the International Cricket Council Cricket World Cup in 2003. However, it is widely believed the sides containing the likes of Allan Donald, Shaun Pollock, Gary Kirsten and Hansie Cronjegrossly underachieved, gaining a reputation as "chokers", due to them reaching the semi-finals of the Cricket World Cup four times, but failing to progress into the finals. In the second part of the 1990s, South Africa had the highest winning percentage in ODIs of any team, but they were knocked out of the 1996 World Cup in the quarter-finals, and then were eliminated on count back after tying their semi-final against Australia in 1999. In 2003, South Africa were one of the favourites but were eliminated by one run in the group stages after they had mistakenly counted the number of runs they needed.
They have also had bad press for failing in vital matches in global tournaments including the 2002 ICC Champions Trophy and the 2007 ICC World Twenty20.
With Donald retiring, Cronje banned for match-fixing and later killed in a plane crash, and Pollock also retiring from international cricket, the team once again changed shape. Graeme Smith was made captain, although following injuries to Smith and Jacques Kallis, Ashwell Princedeputised as Test captain on 12 July 2006. At the age of 29, he became the first non-white man to captain the once all-white South African cricket team. Due to a racial quota policy, the side was once required to contain black players, unlike the past. However, that policy was rescinded in 2007.
With the addition of class players such as AB de Villiers and Hashim Amla, the South African Cricket team started rising in the ICC rankings. After many of the major players in the Australian side that had dominated the early 2000s had retired, the number one place in the ICC Test Championship was a wide open race, with India and England having short stints as the number one side. South Africa toured England in 2012 for a three Test series with the winner assured of being the world No. 1. South Africa went on to take the series comfortably 2–0 and claim the top spot in the rankings, a position they have held onto for over a full calendar year.
In February 2014 South Africa took on Australia in a Test series, with the winner being ranked No. 1 team in the world. Australia won the series 2-1. South Africa later in the year would regain the No. 1 ranking. As of 20th of March 2016 South Africa are ranked 3rd in Test Cricket.
During this time of dominance in the Test arena, the ODI and T20I performances were far less consistent, as South Africa search for a winning formula ahead of the 2014 ICC World Twenty20 and the 2015 ICC Cricket World Cup. A notable ODI series loss to New Zealand at home in January 2013, and a further loss in Sri Lanka highlighted South Africa's recent difficulties. Exits from the 2012 ICC World Twenty20and the 2013 ICC Champions Trophy only served to improve South Africa's reputation as 'chokers' in major tournaments. In the latter years of Smith's career, South Africa split the captaincy in the shorter forms of the game, with the ODI side being led by AB de Villiers and the T20I side by Faf du Plessis. After Smith's retirement, Hashim Amla was appointed captain of the test side, leading his side to victory in his first test in charge, in Galle in Sri Lanka. For many years, cricket was regarded as the game of the privileged white man, but great strides have been made to make it a game for all South Africans. Most of the credit for this change must go to the Cricket South Africa's development programme, which started long before the country held its first democratic elections in 1994.
International Competition
An ever-increasing number of players of colour have made it to the top of the game in South Africa, being chosen to represent the Proteas, but it is at lower levels that the change is most obvious.
Quotas introduced at senior provincial level have unearthed some excellent talent, while junior provincial and national teams are even closer to reflecting the demographics of country.
This is a growing trend, and the hope is that in years to come quotas will not be necessary, all South Africans will have equal opportunity to make it to the top of the game, and South African cricket will be able to challenge the world by drawing on all the talent available in the country.
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Cricket took hold in South Africa from the time that Great Britain began to seize control from the Dutch in the late 1700s (the whole of South African Dutch possession finally being ceded through the Anglo-Dutch Treaty in 1814). The first recognised cricket match in the history of South Africa was played on 5 January 1808 between two teams of English officers posted there. Interest accelerated sufficiently for South Africa to become the third Test nation (following in the footsteps of England and Australia) in 1889 (the same year that first-class cricket began in the country) against England at St George's Park Cricket Ground in Port Elizabeth. It was also one of the three founder Members of the ICC in 1909.
International Competition
Domestic cricket
South Africa's three major domestic competitions are the SuperSport Series (four day first class competition), the MTN Domestic Championship (List A one-day competition) and Standard Bank Pro 20 Series (domestic Twenty20 competition). During the 1970s and 1980s, a first-class tournament for non-whites called the Howa Bowl was also played.
Generally encompassing more than one provincial associate team, six first-class teams take part in the SuperSport Series, MTN Championships and Pro 20 Series competitions.
A six-team franchise system was introduced in 2004-05 to replace the previous 11 teams who had been contesting the major domestic competitions. Those six teams compete in a four-day and two limited-overs tournaments. The first-class programme is called the SuperSport Series, with each team playing the others home and away. There is also a 45-over competition "the MTN Domestic Championship" along with the Standard Pro20 that began in 2003-04.
The Proteas
Previously known as the Springboks, the Proteas, after an initial settling-in period, adapted surprisingly quickly to the demands of the international game in 1991.
They lost their first two one-day internationals to India in India, but in the third match they showed what they were capable of, chasing down an imposing victory target of 288 in 50 overs, to win by eight wickets with 3.2 overs to spare.
The South African side quickly established a reputation as a superb fielding outfit, a reputation soon backed up by its the bowling attack and, after a period of maturing, its batting line-up. In very little time after their return to the international fold the Proteas became one of the elite teams of world cricket.
In many ways they were more than the sum of their parts, with teamwork and grit securing them a number victories when the odds seemed stacked against them.
A famous example of this was the third test at Sydney in January 1994, when the Proteas defeated the powerful Australians by five runs, skittling them for just 111 in their second innings when victory for the home team had seemed a foregone conclusion.
In 2012, they ascended to the number one ranking in test cricket, after beating England in England. This was followed by a second successive series victory over Australia in Australia.
Soon after their return to the international game, the Proteas became a powerhouse in the limited-overs game, ranking for many years as either the best or second best team in the world. In test cricket (the five-day game), they were in the upper tier of teams for well over a decade before ascending to the position of the world's best team in 2012.
SA's debut - 1992
South Africa made their debut at the World Cup in 1992 and made a big splash, thrashing hosts Australia by nine wickets in their opening match.
SA went all the way to the semi-finals before falling victim to a controversial ruling on matches delayed by rain. Pakistan claimed the title with a 22-run victory over England.
Sri Lanka showed they were a team to be respected in the most emphatic fashion in 1996, beating Australia by seven wickets to win the title. For South Africa, it was a disappointing tournament as they went unbeaten through their pool, only to fall in the quarterfinals to the West Indies and an inspired innings by Brian Lara.
Greatest match of all time
In 1999, Australia and South Africa played in one of the greatest matches of all time as they tied their World Cup semi-final, after Allan Donald was run out in the final over with the Proteas needing one run for victory.
The Australians went through to the final because they had defeated South Africa by five wickets with only two balls to spare earlier in the tournament. In the title-decider, Australia recorded an easy eight-wicket win over Pakistan.
South Africa hosted the World Cup in 2003, and entered the tournament with high hopes of becoming the first nation to win cricket's biggest event on home soil. Unfortunately for the home fans, the Proteas disappointed and failed to reach the Super Sixes stage after yet another defeat that was hard to believe.
Shaun Pollock's team came up one run short of what was required in a rain- affected match against Sri Lanka in Durban, resulting in a tie, which meant that for a second World Cup in succession a tie equalled elimination.
Twenty20 World Cup
South Africa hosted the inaugural Twenty20 World Cup in September 2007 and the event was widely praised as an outstanding success.
This viewpoint was reflected in the decision of the England and Wales Cricket Board to sign the tournament director, former Proteas' fast bowler Steve Elworthy, to fill the same role for the 2009 edition of the Twenty20 World Championships, which will take place in England.
India were crowned world champions after defeating arch-rivals Pakistan in an exciting final, which put an exclamation mark on a hugely successful tournament.
All-time Great
There are many legendary South African bowlers and plenty of batsmen who have scored more Test runs than Graeme Pollock. Yet few, if any, of them would begrudge the left-hander his right to be called the greatest of them all. After all, it was not Pollock's fault that his time playing the game largely coincided with his nation's isolation from the international sporting arena. What is clear, however, is that when he did get the chance to play in 23 Test matches between 1963 and 1970 there were few to match either his class or run-making ability. Only Don Bradman has averaged more than Pollock's 60.97 (2256 runs with seven centuries from just 41 innings) in Test history and the Australian considered him as equaled only by Sir Garfield Sobers in terms of left-handed batsmen he watched over his lifetime.
