Linda Zondi, South Africa’s national selection panel convener, said Hashim Amla’s spot in their World Cup 2019 squad was never in question, at least until Reeza Hendricks and Aiden Markram did “something better” than the veteran.
There have been concerns over Amla’s form in the lead up to the World Cup. He hasn’t been in the best nick in international cricket, and his form in domestic cricket also hasn’t inspired much confidence.
The selectors, however, decided to back his experience and past record when choosing their 15-man squad. The recent downturn in returns notwithstanding, Amla still averages close to 50 in ODIs. He has scored 7910 runs including 27 hundreds.
His selection meant there was no place for one of Markram or Hendricks, and the axe fell on the latter. Hendricks burst onto the international scene with a bang, scoring a century in Sri Lanka, but has since been unable to match that high. In 18 ODIs, he has scored just 455 runs at 26.76.
“From a roles point of view, he didn’t fit with our needs,” said Zondi. “Yes, he’s got X factor, but when you look holistically, our plan was to take a batting all-rounder. Chris Morris didn’t fit that. He fits as a bowling all-rounder, but we went with Nortje because we felt that if asked, he’d definitely bowl 10 overs. Morris hasn’t bowled 10 overs for us.”
South Africa will get their World Cup campaign underway against England in the tournament opener in Edgbaston on May 30.
Squad: Faf du Plessis (c)‚ JP Duminy‚ David Miller‚ Dale Steyn‚ Andile Phehlukwayo‚ Imran Tahir‚ Kagiso Rabada‚ Dwaine Pretorius‚ Quinton de Kock‚ Anrich Nortje‚ Lungi Ngidi‚ Aiden Markram‚ Rassie van der Dussen‚ Hashim Amla‚ Tabraiz Shamsi
