South African batting unit generates glimmer of hope

South African teams have always been on the wrong side of results when it boils down to knockouts in World Cups. The team possesses the talent to excel in the showpiece event but has not been able to transform it into the trophy cabinet. The rainbow nation has participated in eight ODI World Cups since 1992 and made it to the semi-finals on four occasions. They were the quarter-finalists twice and were knocked out in the group stages a couple of times. However, even after having a bunch of talented athletes in their squad each edition, winning the World Cup has always been a distant dream for the team. 2015 looked to be their best shot at the trophy with stars like AB de Villiers and Morne Morkel plying their trade for the national side. 

South Africa first drew an away series against India by 2-2 and displayed a solid batting performance. The batters showcased that they are able to bat well in subcontinent conditions. Heinrich Klassen performed brilliantly in the series scoring 118 runs from three innings at 39.33 with a strike rate of 151.28 including a half-century. In this series, they pulled off a tough chase of above 200 riding on the back of a sublime knock by Rassie van der Dussen. The next assignment was three-match series against England. The pitches were good for batting and the South African batter optimized it fully. They scored above 190 in all the games and won the series after losing the first match. Reeza Hendricks and Rille Rossouw were the stand-out performers for the team. 

These two series along with the recent one against Ireland have displayed the depth of the South African batting unit and talent pool. The team have two quality openers in form of Quinton de Kock and Reeza Hendricks who make a left-right combination. Hendricks is in the form of his life scoring four fifties in his last five T20Is and so there is no question to leave him out. Temba Bavuma is the other opening option as he will be probably leading the team and can play an anchor role with his batting style. However, with De Kock out of form currently, he along with Hendricks seems to be the ideal opening pair in T20s. 

South Africa has some solid middle-order options. Rassie van der Dussen is a technically strong player and he has the ability to anchor the middle order and also accelerate the run rate. Riley Roussow did well in the recent England series while batting at number 3. Aiden Markram is an experienced batter in the batting lineup and he can provide bowling options with his off-breaks which makes him handy. Heinrich Klassen is another batter who has been brilliant for South Africa recently and can pile up runs with consistency. 

Since the previous T20 World Cup, South Africa had scored 153 runs per innings and scored 41 runs on average in the powerplay. Since 1st January 2022, South Africa has had the second-highest strike rate in the middle phase (6-16) scoring 692 runs from seven innings at a scoring rate of 149.78 with only Bulgaria ahead of them. That shows the stability of their middle order and the capability to accelerate as per the need. Aiden Markram features in the top 10 batters in T20Is according to ICC rankings. With so many options available in the batting unit, the team looks set for a thrilling World Cup campaign. 

With so much of options available, their only challenge will be to select the best batters. Temba Bavuma cannot be left out as he will lead the team but then one of the explosive batters in the team might have to sit out. The team have players who can anchor the innings as well as explode at different positions. Hendricks can lead the charge at the top, Markram can attack in the middle while Preorious or Miller can provide a memorable finish.