Rankings v standings, Shakib v Rabada

“We know how to play on these surfaces, with the bat as well as the ball. It’s a lot more instinctive for us.” - Temba Bavuma

Telford Vice | Cape Town

IT’S the most thoughtless, boring, lazy press conference question of all: “Where do you rank that century/five-for/win?” Pertinently, a comparison of the current ODI rankings and World Cup Super League standings present a sure-fire argument for why it should never be asked.

Bangladesh are on top of the latter, but in ninth place in the former. How is it possible that the most in-form side in the format are behind eight teams in that pecking order? This silliness doesn’t end there — South Africa are fifth in the rankings and 10th in the standings. How do you rank that bizarre invented reality?

Rather let’s forget that nonsense and focus on the fact that two of the more entertaining teams in the game will square off in three matches between Friday and Wednesday. Yes, Super League points will be at stake. No, that doesn’t mean we have to take this more seriously than usual.

There’s more value than those considerations in the presence of Shakib al Hasan, one of cricket’s premier allrounders regardless of the colour of the ball he is facing or bowling. Whether he would be aboard or not was by no means certain not that long ago. When he was included in both the Test and ODI squads in March, he withdrew on the grounds that he needed a rest. Criticism from on high duly followed, and Shakib relented.

He would seem to have a point about deserving some time off. Shakib has played in 373 of Bangladesh’s 471 matches, across the formats, since he made his debut in August 2006. Or does he have a point? Of the 53 games his team have played since the start of 2021, Shakib has missed 18. So he’s not been around for more than a third of Bangladesh’s matches in that time. Anyway. Here he is, and all of us should be happy about that — except perhaps Shakib himself and his US-based family.

His form is another matter. Shakib hasn’t reached 50 in any format at international since July 2021, or 25 innings ago. The South Africans will hope his dry run continues, and that the Bangladeshis don’t suddenly figure out how to play in this country. Of their 28 games on the sharp tip of Africa, they have won only one: they beat West Indies by six wickets with two overs to spare in the 2007 World T20. The better news for them is that they did so at the Wanderers, which is not dissimilar to Centurion and is where Sunday’s ODI will be played.

South Africa will want to pick up where they left off in January, when they won all three ODIs against India. Rassie van der Dussen, Quinton de Kock and Temba Bavuma scored a century each — the only hundreds in the series — and Andile Phehlukwayo took six wickets at an average of 18.33. Seven of the eight bowlers South Africa used in the rubber went for less than a run a ball. The exception was Sisanda Magala, who has been dropped for fitness reasons.

Bavuma’s team will be on no less a mission than to take all of the available Super League points off Bangladesh. Given that they will have a full-strength attack at their disposal, except for Anrich Nortjé, who is out with a hip injury, that looks more probable than possible. And then Rabada, Lungi Ngidi, Marco Jansen and — in theory, at least — Nortjé will disappear to the IPL, much to the chagrin of Dean Elgar, who will have to find a way to engineer 20 wickets without them in the Test series that starts on March 31.

But, for now at least, the contest is authentic. And that means South Africa will start as firm favourites.

When: Friday, 1pm Local Time

Where: Centurion

What to expect: A pitch not as challenging to bat on as would be the case in a Test at this ground, but the outfield will be as fast as usual. There’s little chance of an afternoon thunderstorm.

Team news

South Africa: Sisanda Magala’s enforced absence aside, the XI who sealed the whitewash over India should be in action again. Magala will likely be replaced by Kagiso Rabada, who was rested for the India series. Zubayr Hamza has pulled out of the ODI and Test series for undisclosed personal reasons.

Possible XI: Quinton de Kock, Janneman Malan, Temba Bavuma (capt), Aiden Markram, Rassie van der Dussen, David Miller, Andile Phehlukwayo, Dwaine Pretorius, Keshav Maharaj, Kagiso Rabada, Lungi Ngidi.

Bangladesh: Where Shakib al Hasan will bat is the only real question. Three or five are the options, but it would make sense to get him to the crease sooner rather than later.

Possible XI: Tamim Iqbal (capt), Liton Das, Shakib al Hasan, Mushfiqur Rahim, Yasir Ali, Mahmudullah, Afif Hossain, Mehedy Hasan, Taskin Ahmed, Shoriful Islam, Mustafizur Rahman.

What they said:

“I’d be lying if I said we weren’t going to try and exploit the conditions. We know how to play on these surfaces, with the bat as well as the ball. It’s a lot more instinctive for us. We’ll make use of that advantage and make it work in our favour. We expect there to be pace and bounce, true to what Highveld wickets are like.” — Temba Bavuma hopes the home side’s edge will produce edges.

“Shakib is available for tomorrow’s game and he is looking forward to the game.” — Tamim Iqbal leaves little room for doubt over Shakib al Hasan’s participation.

First published by Cricbuzz.