RISING STAR FILE. Kwena Maphaka would be a gamble for the Proteas to include in their squad for the Champions Trophy, but it could be a risk worth taking. Photo: AFP
Image: AFP
The Proteas coaching staff are traditionally a cautious bunch, and taking a risk with selections on players that haven’t yet produced the goods is a rare sight.
However, the Proteas do seem to take risks on chronically injured players like Anrich Nortje. Whenever the fast bowler has been called on for South Africa, he’s seldom let the team down.
That seems well in the past though, as he was ruled out of the SA20 and Champions Trophy on Thursday, a matter of days after he was included in the Proteas squad for the ICC event.
It leaves the Proteas with a selection conundrum to replace the fast bowler for the tournament starting next month, but they will likely go with Gerald Coetzee.
In Coetzee, the Proteas will have a more than able replacement but his performances are generally inconsistent as his average of 6.48 runs per over in the 14 One-Day Internationals he’s played for South Africa seem to suggest.
He does offer something with the bat though, as he is a clean striker of the ball down the order.
However, it may be a bit harsh but the 24-year-old does not seem to have the massive potential of someone like Kwena Maphaka.
The recently-matriculated Maphaka has the world at his feet, and there probably will be no rush to put the massive pressure of a big event on those young shoulders.
Though he is just 18-years-old, he has already played in all three formats for South Africa and now holds the record as the youngest debutant in Test cricket for the Proteas.
It would be a huge gamble to include Maphaka for the Champions Trophy, but some risks are worth taking especially on a tearaway left-arm quick that has the potential to do something incredible.
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