PHOTO CRICKET SOUTH AFRICA
ANDILE Phehlukwayo has been selected for a 16-man South African Test squad to play a four match series against England starting on July 6.
The cricketer, who hails from Margate, has had a fairly rapid rise so far.
While he has shown his worth for the Proteas in ODI and T20 cricket, his inclusion in the Test squad has surprised some, to be fair.
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It seems he has been brought in as cover for Vernon Philander, so it’s unlikely he will play in any of the Test matches.
Still, the Hollywoodbets Dolphins player has the potential to be a key player in the future, so he will gain experience being around the Test team set-up.
That’s something the South African selectors have done for many years. He’s only 21 years old, but somehow seems to have been around for a lot longer.
Perhaps it’s because he has been used a death bowler in white ball cricket.
Some, like this writer, were disappointed when he was dropped from the team for the
first two games of the recent Champions Trophy, where South Africa did not even get out of the pool.
He came back for the final game against India, but by then South Africa’s batting collapse had made defending a small total very difficult.
If the selectors are smart, they’ll keep him (and Dane Paterson) as the go-to death bowlers for at least the next six years.
Maybe then we’ll have two World Cups to talk about, three if you throw in a T20. (We’re allowed to dream aren’t we?)
Andile has had a habit of defying the odds and exceeding others’ expectations, so if he does get a run in the Test side, don’t be too surprised if he more than holds his own.
He is a former Margate Primary pupil, who went on to Glenwood High in Durban on a hockey scholarship, but it was cricket that won the day for him.
He is classified as a medium-fast bowler who can bat, one that can clear the ropes if he’s in the mood. This is not to say he is a slogger.
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In fact he has an eye-pleasing technique – there’s something of Brian Lara there – and looks capable of knuckling down and making ‘proper’ runs.
The aquad is Faf du Plessis (captain), Hashim Amla, Temba Bavuma, Theunis de Bruyn, Quinton de Kock, JP Duminy, Dean Elgar, Heino Kuhn, Keshav Maharaj, Aiden Markram, Morné Morkel, Chris Morris, Duanne Olivier, Andile Phehlukwayo, Vernon Philander and Kagiso Rabada.
The likely starting team is Elgar, Kuhn, Amla, Duminy, Du Plessis, Bavuma, De Kock, Philander, Maharaj, Rabada, Morkel.
Kuhn replaces dropped Stephen Cook. Phehlukwayo replaces dropped Wayne Parnell.
There’s a chance Faf du Plessis may miss the Lord’s game, as he and his wife await the arrival of their first child.
In that case, Elgar will captain and either De Bruyn or Markram will fill his spot in the line-up.
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