Quinton de Kock took on England’s pace spearhead after Rassie van der Dussen shone on debut
Firdose Moonda in Centurion28-Dec-2019Jofra Archer greeted Quinton de Kock with a warning, but a friendly one: a 141kph bouncer that waved at him as it went down leg. De Kock didn’t bother with pleasantries in response. He clubbed Archer’s next ball over square leg for six and then top-edged him over fine leg for six more. De Kock might as well have said, “Since you’re still bowling, you might as well have some of this.”There’s no doubt that South Africa were irritated that Archer had not been withdrawn from the attack after he sent down a beamer and a ball which closely resembled a beamer late on the second evening. Some in the South African camp voiced their concerns to match referee Andy Pycroft immediately after play, others made their disapproval known on the field; but Archer himself was unaffected by being in the naughty corner and continued with an aggressive, albeit sometimes ineffective, approach.He bowled quick and short and was in South Africa’s face, but grinned rather than snarled whenever they took him on. The overnight pair, Rassie van der Dussen and Anrich Nortje didn’t – understandably so for a man on a debut trying to make a name for himself and another the nighwatchman doing more than his job – but de Kock, as we know from the first innings, has no need for any of that. He had one message for Archer: we didn’t want you to bowl and now maybe you won’t want to.ALSO READ: Markram out of series with fractured fingerAfter de Kock’s opening assault, Archer held his length back. De Kock latched on and sent a third six over backward square before clobbering the next ball through mid-on. Archer refused to go fuller and his next ball was a bumper, and wide. He didn’t smile at that.De Kock scored 26 runs off the first 12 balls he faced and seemed in a hurry for South Africa to finalise their target, but he didn’t push the lead above 350. That was the job of Vernon Philander, who has put in a strong performance worthy the opening salvo of his final series. Philander won the cricketing duel with his opposite number, Ben Stokes, with two silken cover drives and a dismissive whack through midwicket. Stokes won the physical one. He hit Philander on the bottom hand and then in the unspeakables but could not stop the steady stream of runs.South Africa ended up setting England a target that is 125 runs more than the last successful chase at this ground – 251 for 8 by England in 2000. Only one captain was trying to win that “Test” so maybe the comparison is immaterial, but it illustrates how tough fourth innings are at the venue and how challenging a task England had been set – their efforts in getting to the close one down notwithstanding.It also speaks to how much better South Africa batted than they have throughout 2019. The last time South Africa’s batsmen set the opposition such a daunting target was in January, when Pakistan fell 107 runs short of 381 in Johannesburg. The last time they set the opposition a target that looked unchaseable was the 304 against Sri Lanka in Durban a month later, but it was not enough.Following that defeat, South Africa only posted totals over 200 three times in eight innings and their batting confidence looked shot. They regained some of it here, on a surface where the bounce became inconsistent and the bowlers remained aggressive.Though there are still problems – such as the malfunctioning opening partnership – there are also some solutions, particularly in the middle order. Van der Dussen became the first player to make half-centuries on his T20, ODI and Test debuts and showed he belongs in all formats. That may turn out to work against him, especially when the balance of the team is considered for the next Test.Rassie van der Dussen and Anrich Nortje frustrated England•Getty ImagesAiden Markram is out of the series after fracturing his finger. All things being equal, the reserve opener Pieter Malan should come into the XI for the New Year’s Test. But this is South Africa and all things are not equal. Temba Bavuma, who has been netting this week, may have recovered from his injury by the time 2020 dawns and there will be pressure to get him back into the team. Not only is Bavuma the Test vice-captain but he would significantly increase representation in the side, especially after South Africa missed their transformation target at SuperSport Park.Injuries to Bavuma and Lungi Ngidi (who may only be fit by the third Test, if at all) means team playing in this match includes only one black African (Kagiso Rabada) and three players of colour (Zubayr Hamza, Keshav Maharaj and Philander), two short of the target of two black African players and four others of colour. Although that target is only applied on average over the course of a season, missing it early on is ill-advised.The complication is how to fit Bavuma in, after van der Dussen’s fine debut. Usually, the team policy is that the incumbent always slots straight back in (that was why Kyle Abbott and Marchant de Lange were left out after their maiden outings, both in place of an injured Philander) but this time the man in possession in under pressure. Bavuma has not scored a century in four years and averages 31.24, so handing him back his place will cause debate, if nothing else. The option to keep both van der Dussen and Bavuma can only be considered at the expense of an allrounder, most likely Dwaine Pretorius, but South Africa have seen the worth of a fourth seamer.So the only alternative is to move one of Bavuma or van der Dussen into Markram’s opening spot. Both of them have done the job before – Bavuma in a Test, van der Dussen extensively at first-class level – but being thrust into the position now would seem unfair on everyone. For van der Dussen or Bavuma, it would only be a makeshift solution, because Markram will be back and the reality is that they are battling it out for a middle-order spot. And to ignore Malan would send all the wrong messages about whether domestic performances are rewarded.But for now, that is not something South Africa need to concern themselves with. There are still nine wickets to be taken, a series lead to secure and bragging rights over Archer, one of the two players South Africa were targeting, to earn.
