ICC World T20 | Rest of South Africa was covering up for Temba Bavuma's deficiency up top, remarks Tom Moody
Tom Moody has picked out Temba Bavuma as a driving reason for South Africa's elimination from the World T20, highlighting the batter's poor run of form in the tournament. He went on to compare the Proteas skipper to Aaron Finch, stating such deficits in the top order can dictate a team's fortune.
South Africa's shock elimination from the World T20 has brought the Proteas under heavy scrutiny, especially their opener Temba Bavuma. The 32-year-old managed just 70 runs in five matches at the event, with a high score of 36 against Pakistan. In fact, throughout 2022, the South African skipper has only accumulated 134 runs at an average of 13.40 and a strike rate below 100. Only in three of his 12 innings has he managed to score more than 10 runs, raising questions over his place in the team with the likes of Reeza Hendricks available in the squad.
"Without a doubt. That's [Bavuma's form] the elephant in the room. There are better-form players for this format sitting on the bench that should be playing on that side. That will be a discussion, that has to be a discussion in South Africa's review because you cannot afford to carry key personnel. Particularly at the top of the order. That is the critical point," Tom Moody said of the batter on ESPN Cricinfo following the Rainbow nation's loss to the Netherlands.
The fact that Bavuma is the captain of the team makes it an interesting scenario for the board, given that the opener's exclusion from the squad can hugely affect morale. However, South Africa are not the only team suffering from such a dilemma with hosts Australia also under the radar in the wake of a string of poor returns from skipper Aaron Finch that played a role in their Super 12s elimination.
"They had a similar issue. Once you have one wheel that's not spinning like it should be spinning, it affects the direction you all go as a unit. That's what was happening with South Africa. The rest were sort of covering up for a clear deficiency up top," Moody highlighted.
"We totally respect their situation and what they're achieving and you have to admire everything that's happening. But there's another way you can make up to be more effective with what's happening at the top of the order," he added.
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