South Africa

I'm lucky enough to write a column for my local paper, the Northampton Chronicle & Echo, on Northamptonshire County Cricket Club, now known as Northants (the abbreviation all rather cheap and to save money on decals and letterheads, knowing our tight Chief Exec) and so got to know some of the South African players as the Kolpak ruling flooded the county championship with this particular breed of cricketers. I can't say they are the nicest blokes but they play hard on and off the pitch so fair enough, Herschel Gibbs cracking biography detailing exactly that attitude. But small clubs like Northants had to exploit the Kolpak ruling, another welcome method to save money, a labour loophole allowing South Africans the right to work in the European Union, an ideal immigrant mercenary work force for the smaller counties to cherry pick quality players from. The cash - strapped Div 2 counties couldn't afford the equivalent of young English talent that was now migrating to Division One for bigger wages and so hired hoards of Saffers to even up the competition, numbers that would eventually hit 25% of all professionals playing in the English domestic game at the Kolpak peak, numbering some six teams worth in the two divisions of nine. At one point teams like Northants and Leicestershire had five or six in the first eleven, yours truly renaming the Northamptonshire Steelbacks (our one-day team nickname) as the Northamptonshire 'Steelboks', which caught on and is now quoted on Sky and in the broadsheets, my claim to fame! But by employing those guys we were blocking young English talent coming through and so defeated the object of the subsidised 18 counties set up to provide future test players, why the practice was eventually stamped on by the ECB (English Cricket Board). But the irony was that many of the South Africans were coming over to work here because they were being forced out of their statesides to allow young black and Cape Coloured players to come into the game, often not as good, the exact opposite as in England. Either way, lots of South Africans - internationals and younger players - have had a good look at English domestic cricket lately and like the Aussie overseas players always used to do the season before the Ashes in England, have now moved ahead of England in both the test and one-day international rankings because of, although to be fair quite a few teams are moving past England in the ODI rankings, the team over the years like one of those rubbish cars that are always at the back of the grid in the Grand Prix, England more Torror Rosso than Red Bull right now. Yes they are tired in the World Cup after 6 months on the road but they have never given any time of day for 50 over one-day cricket.

South Africa have the unenviable record of losing every single one of their knockout matches in the Cricket World Cup, so their defeat to New Zealand this week expected, the Blackcaps the exact opposite in the World Cup and always over performing. I witnessed South Africa's best World Cup performance in Australia in a packed Sydney Cricket Ground in 1992 against England in the semi-final, the crazy rain rules denying them a chance of victory in their first ever World Cup after the international ban and so a place in the final at a packed MCG stolen from them. The calculation went from 13 of the last seven balls to 22 runs off the final ball, three separate calculations put up on the scoreboard as Alan lamb skilfully delayed returning to the pitch to make it impossible for the Springboks to win. They also blew that memorable semi-final in England against Australia when the Alan Donald mix up cost that last wicket run-out, to this day many hinting the game was fixed, the height of the Hansje Cronje affair. I was there to and it was an amazing match.

The Proteas picked the right type of team to win on the sub-continent for this tournament, qualifying with five victories out of six in the group stage, losing only to England and bowling out all six teams in the process. Their two and three spin attack from the off was bold as it was decisive and Tahir, Bhota, and latterly Peterson, have impressed on the dusty Indian tracks. Tahir was fabulous in the Twenty20 in England last season for Warwickshire and I expect young Petersen to come on leaps and bounds for Derbyshire this season. Bhota, I'm pleased to say, has signed for Northants, a Twenty20 specialist.

-The Proteas One-day Team-

Captain - Graeme Smith (aged 30) Cape Cobras
WK - AB de Villiers (aged 27) Titans
Bat - Hashim Amla (aged 27) Dolphins
Spin/bat - Johan Botha (aged 28) Warriors
Bat - JP Duminy (aged 26) Cape Cobras
Bat - Francois du Plessis (aged 26) Titans
Bat - Colin Ingram (aged 25) Warriors
Bat/seam - Jacques Kallis (aged 35) Warriors
Bwl - Morne Morkel (aged 26) Titans
Bwl -Wayne Parnell (aged 21) Warriors
Spin - Robin Peterson (aged 31) Warriors
Bowl - Dale Steyn (aged 27) Titans
Spin - Imran Tahir aged 31) Dolphins
Bwl - Lonwabo Tsotsobe (aged 26) Warriors
WK - Morne van Wyk (aged 31) knights

Skill wise their batting and bowling is solid. Graeme Smith, the longest serving test captain in the game - but stepping down as one-day cap after the NZ defeat - will still be a stoic bat in test matches and always club it like a caveman in the other formats. Hashim Amla has come on big time in recent years and his familiar beard and lavish square-cut a reassuring sight for his team mates. AB De Villiers is the star bat of the side and their first three the apex of their recent success. This guy has all the shots and can score very quickly and turn games in a matter of 5 overs in one-day games. I saw him score the only Twenty20 hundred that has ever been scored at Northampton - and he came in at 5!

Bowling wise they are strong, the twin pace attack of Steyn and Morkel likely to sting your fingers if your not on your toes at the crease. Spin wise they have options, the three I mentioned able to bat and field so ideal for one-day cricket. The only question now is there any good quick bowlers coming through? The team is shaped by South Africa's affirmative action policy and there must be two black or Cape Coloured kids in the named 12, the middle-order and bowling the dumping place for these guys that may not be up to the task ahead, the prolific Jack Kallis slowly being edged out to free up a spot or two for 'new faces'. Andre Nel and Kevin Pietersen were the first real victims of this reverse racism and forced out of their domestic game and so denting their international chances, both taking very different paths since. Many older white South Africans were also asked to retire early in 2009 to make way. Its destroyed Nel and he is in a real mess and tried to kill himself last year with an overdose as he went off the rails and has left Surrey this week through 'mutual consent'. 'KP' is also in the wrong place, little whispers suggesting he may have depression problems like young Yardy, no longer the big man now Swanny's mouth is on the scene and so not motivated.

-The Big Match-

What looked like the easiest quarter-final draw came South Africa's way, New Zealand in Mirpur. But the All-Blacks have made four World Cup semi-finals and always hard to beat in the 50 over, their bits and pieces cricketers ideal for the format, this, their big tournament. Both teams figured early on that the key to success out in the Sub-Continent was to take the pace off the ball and let the batsmen work for the runs, earning both sides this head-to-head.

New Zealand's 221 (Ryder 83, Taylor 43) was never really enough, regardless of the wicket quality. But chasing under lights anywhere in the world is not easy and most teams lose the big matches that way. South Africa looked very good at 102-2 with Kallis set but when the ball gets damp the wicket can seam big time and so it did, 172 all-out 16 overs later, the giant Oram and gnarly McCullum cleaning them up, semi-final number five for NZ, the winner of Eng V Sri-Lanka the prize. Somewhat bizzarrely, RSA legend Alan Donald was the NZ bowling coach who masterminded this.

---Quarter Finals---

Pakistan bt West Indies
India bt Australia
New Zealand bt South Africa
Sri-Lanka bt England

---Semi Final---

Pak v Ind
Sri- anka bt NZ

---South Africa's Tournament history---

1992: Semi Finals
1996: Quarter Finals
1999: Semi Finals
2003: First round
2007: Semi Finals
2011:Quarter Finals

---ICC World Twenty20---

2007: Super 8
2009: Semi-Finals
2010: Super 8

---ICC Champions Trophy---

2002: Semi Finals
2004: First round
2006: Semi Finals
2009: First round

---ICC Knockout---

1998: Winners

2000: Semi Finals

---Commonwealth Games---

1998: Gold medal
Summary: Going home in disgrace!