NEWS
Follow UsSouth Africa skipper Temba Bavuma felt that Quinton de Kock will have a 'point to prove' as he returns to the ODI squad for the series against India starting on Wednesday at Paarl. Last month, De Kock announced his surprise decision to retire from the longest format after the first Test against India.
"It's good to see Quinny again. We obviously miss him in the Test team, but he has made his decision and that's a decision we respect. Having Quinny again with the team has been good; and knowing Quinny, he will have a point to prove," Bavuma said ahead of the first ODI on Wednesday.
South Africa's white-ball captain felt that he does not need to remind De Kock about his role in the team.
"I don't want to put words in his mouth but he will have a point to prove, and I am sure he is as excited as we are to see him in the team," Bavuma added.
Despite resting spearhead Kagiso Rabada for the ODIs, South Africa have Sisanda Magala, Lungi Ngidi, Wayne Parnell, Andile Phehlukwayo, Marco Jansen, Dwayne Pretorius as pace options while Tabraiz Shamsi, Keshav Maharaj and George Linde are the three spinners in the squad. In the conditions conducive for bowlers and multiple options at his disposal, Bavuma hinted that all the batters might not get the opportunity to play.
"Quinton and Janneman have done fairly well so I don't see that changing. I come back into the picture at No.3 Then, it's probably more the middle order, whether we want to go with an extra batter or an allrounder at 6. That's the real conversation that needs to happen."
"Considering Paarl and the conditions there - it's a lot different to our Highveld wickets - it's on the lower side; a bit skiddier. We'll consider pace bowlers who can exploit that, like Lungi (Ngidi), (Sisanda) Magala and Marco Jansen. And then Paarl is quite friendly to slower bowlers and spinners so (Tabraiz) Shamsi, (Keshav) Maharaj and (George) Linde all come into the picture."
Bavuma also praised pacer Marco Jansen, whose performances in the Test series earned him his maiden ODI call-up.
"The world has seen what cricketing abilities he has and his x-factor ability. It was a no-brainer to get him into white ball squad. He is a guy who will come strongly into contention when we speak about the team," Bavuma said of the 21-year old.
Bavuma was confident of his form after scoring two fifties in the first and second Tests and remained not out in all the second innings against India as the hosts secured a 2-1 series victory.
"The Test series went quite well for the team but for me personally, my feet seemed to move well and I was hitting the ball quite well. I'd like to carry on with that feeling. People have asked me if there's anything I've changed or done differently and to be honest no, I've been doing things the same. Maybe it's just a period of good form," he said.
The series will be a part of the ICC men's World Cup Super League in which South Africa are ninth with five victories from 10 matches. Bavuma said that he is expecting a tough fight from India after a thrilling Test series.
"We're not expecting this one-day series to be easy. We know it's going to be tough, especially considering the Test series. We will prepare as well as we can to make sure we are ready for when the challenge comes our way," he said.