Is Heino Kuhn down and out in terms of international opportunities? Photo: Gareth Copley/Getty Images.
These are tough times in the life of Heino Kuhn.
Having waited until he was 33 years old, Kuhn finally made his Test debut for South Africa in England in July, but after scoring just 113 runs in eight innings, that dream might be over having barely got started.
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South Africa’s next Test engagement is against Bangladesh at the end of this month and Kuhn obviously needs some big runs in the one round of Sunfoil Series matches that will be played before the Proteas gather in Potchefstroom to make sure he stays in the squad.
But the only problem is that Kuhn is now battling to make the Titans team.
With only five spots available for white players, coach Mark Boucher already has six White CSA-contracted players who will probably be looking to play some four-day cricket before the Tests – Quinton de Kock, AB de Villiers (who is apparently very keen to play after his long layoff), Faf du Plessis, Dean Elgar, Morne Morkel and Chris Morris. Adding to the selection quandary are Aiden Markram and Heinrich Klaasen, who are both on the fringes of the Test team as well.
“It’s going to be tough, AB will have to play and then there’s Aiden, Dean and Heinrich as well, so that’s four specialist batsmen already. So a tough decision will have to be made and I’m man enough to handle it. But I am still doing my wicketkeeping drills and I’m definitely willing to keep wicket if it gets me in the side,” Kuhn said.
The prolific run-scorer in all formats for the Titans said that playing Test cricket for South Africa was an honour that he would always cherish, but he was disappointed that he was not able to score more runs.
“It’s always an honour to get called up for the Proteas, and to play Test cricket was a long-time dream of mine. They were tough conditions in England, but that’s no excuse and I would have loved to do better, but it just didn’t happen. I will always cherish the chance I got and if I get another I will definitely grab it.
“I felt good at the crease even though there was a lot of pressure, but as an older player you can handle that better. I felt comfortable, I was opening with Dean, but it just didn’t happen for me. As an opening batsman, you’re always going to get good balls, that’s part of the job,” Kuhn said.