LEFT ARM OVER
NEIL MANTHORP: Traditional mind-set may have cost SA the first ODI
The one-time master of ODI batting alongside a 29 year old on debut with a golden opportunity to make a strong, late run for inclusion in the World Cup squad, matching each other run for run on a fair but not ideal batting pitch. It could have done with a bit more pace. It wasn’t easy to score runs but there was a bit too much “judging” going on afterwards, and by many people who have no idea what it’s like batting in those conditions. Or any conditions. Or even just batting. There is also no doubt that insufficient credit was paid to Pakistan’s bowlers who were excellent in producing such parsimony during the final 15 overs of SA’s innings. It did seem, however, that both Hashim Amla and Rassie van der Dussen may have become slightly more distracted by the traditional measure of a batsman’s success than was ideal for the match situation during the first ODI. It will always be one of the game’s regrets that centuries and half centuries are so disproportionately regarded as evidence ...
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