The Proteas’ bowling attack has barely dropped in class and standard despite the retirements of household names including Dale Steyn, Vernon Philander and Morne Morkel in the recent past. With the series between SA and the West Indies getting under way in Port of Spain today, Ongama Gcwabe picks three bowlers who will likely maintain the high standards set by the past generations in Test-match cricket.
Kagiso Rabada
291 wickets in 62 matches: Having squeezed into the Test side with Philander, Morkel and Steyn still at their peaks because of his raw pace and skill almost a decade ago, Rabada is now the leader of the attack and has been for many years.
Considered the best fast bowler of this generation by many pundits and active players, Rabada is a massive headache for any batting unit anywhere in the world and it is unlikely that it will change when South Africa resume their World Test Championship campaign today. One would imagine that a Rabada who is determined to cross the 300-wicket mark would be an even greater threat.
With 14 five-fors, four 10-wicket hauls and 291 wickets under the belt in 62 Tests, Rabada has certainly maintained, if not improved, the reputation that Proteas bowling attacks of the past built. Moreover, in the two Test series that the 29-year-old has played against the Windies, he has finished as the top wicket taker on both occasions.
Keshav Maharaj
158 wickets in 50 matches: One of the common mistakes that opposition batters make when preparing to play against South Africa is to put overemphasis on the quicks, almost disregarding spinner Maharaj. Most often, that becomes their undoing as Maharaj has made a name for himself as one of the most dominant spinners in Test cricket.
Building up to the first Test, the wickets in the Caribbean have been described as dry, offering quite a lot of spin. For a spinner who rarely gets conditions that favour him, Maharaj will be licking his lips, itching to have a go in Port of Spain this week.
The last time Maharaj played Test cricket in the Caribbean, some three years ago, he finished with 11 wickets to his name, only second to Rabada.
Nandre Burger
11 wickets in two matches: It is always exciting when a left-arm quick has all the skills ‒ swing and seam ‒ in addition to express pace. Burger ticks all the boxes as he displayed when his burst onto the Test scene against India last summer. He made light work of the most feared batting unit in Test cricket, which included Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul in the same batting order.
Burger becomes an even more important figure in the team seeing that Marco Jansen has been rested for the series. Moreover, given that the Windies batting unit struggles against express pace, as displayed during their 3-0 series loss to England last month, Burger might be in for his best series yet.