Home > Cricket > Are South Africa's pace bowlers too hot or is it that batsmen are not up to speed?
Are South Africa's pace bowlers too hot or is it that batsmen are not up to speed?
Craig Cummings, Chris Gayle and Aftab Ahmed have all suffered serious injuries from the Proteas' pace attack this year. Do the batsmen protect themselves enough?
by Greg Smith on 02 March 2008
Email this Article (45) Comments
Free £10 bet when you register at
Every sport has its share of injuries, but the latest hospitalisation of Bangladesh's Aftab Ahmed must raise serious questions about the care players take in ensuring their safety in cricket.Players are under pressure to perform. Like with all entertainers, crowds demand success and that their heroes display unlimited courage while ensuring victory. In cricket this results in a type of foolish bravado which has seen South Africa bear the responsibility for seriously injuring a number of players this year.The Proteas suffer the indignity of having to tread lightly and not inflict more damage on batsmen, when, in reality, the batsmen should carry that responsibility. No bowler likes to witness any batsman carried off the field to hospital for surgery on his face.'Batsmen should take greater care and possibly display better judgement when in the line of fire'South Africa 's pace attack is deadly – Dale Steyn, the Morkel brothers, Makaya Ntini, and even Jacques Kallis need to be treated with respect, with their ability to keep their pace around 150 km/h.This year to date we have witnessed injuries to Craig Cummings (multiple cheek fracture), Chris Gayle (broken hand) and now Ahmed (multiple facial fractures).Batsmen should take greater care and possibly display better judgement when in the line of fire. It would be reasonable to expect batsmen, when faced with deadly pace, to kit themselves properly with reinforced safety equipment.
Comments (45)
by Greg Smith on March 02, 2008
Sorry, it was actually Andre Nel's aggresive attack that sent the Windies captain, Chris Gale home with a broken hand... and stats have ONE (1) hospital casualty per series against South Africa's pacemen. India... pick your casualty... ??? Tendulkar...??? England ??? Peterson ??? Oz ??? Haydn ??? 1 guaranteed hospital case per series !!!
by Partha Rajagopal on March 02, 2008
I sense a cheap thrill in the disguise of concern for non-SA batsmen. Other teams have pace bowlers too and they can slip in a beamer accidentally and crack the chin of SA batsmen. They'll probably find out when they go to Australia and get through Brett Lee, Mitchell Johnson and a few others. On Indian wickets, the ball will need to be pitched real short to hurt batsmen. So I do not see much problems, thanks for the concern.
by n n on March 03, 2008
Mate, South Africa is beating Bangladesh, a team that shouldn't even have test status. You really think the Indians are going to roll over at home? What about the fact that Australia have Brett Lee, Mitch Johnson and Shaun Tait all at 140-150 km\h average along with the new Glenn McGrath: Stuart Clark? I think you need to restrain yourself before you end up mightily embarrassed.
by Greg Smith on March 03, 2008
Dale Steyn, Andre Nel, Morne Morkel, Albie Morkel, Makaya Ntini and Jacques Kallis ... you say Porche... I say Ferrari ! In 2008 there is ONE team, South Africa, I can afford to shoot my mouth off, coz, like the rugby... South Africa will dominate with this team... its very simply a fact... you can hype up your Aussie team, they're not a match in 2008, and the Indians are not in the same league as the Proteas, and England ? They are just pathetic this season, maybe in 2009/2010 the Indians/Aussie/England might beat the Proteas, but NOT in 2008 !
by Big Ted on March 03, 2008
South Africa's dangerous pace attack..........ha, ha, ha, ha, ho, ho, ho, ho, hee, hee, ha, hah, haa, hah, ho, ho, ho, ho, heee...................ha, ha, ha, ha, hee, hee, ho, ho, ho, ho, hah, haa, haa, he, ho, haa............................ha, ha, ha, ha, hee, hee, ho, ho, ho, ho, hah, haa, haa, he, ho, haa..........ha, ha, ha, ha, ho, ho, ho, ho, hee, hee, ha, hah, haa, hah, ho, ho, ho, ho, heee..........................ha, ha, ha, hee, hee................
by Brad on March 03, 2008
You have got to give it to this fool he never gives up with his brain dead ideas. Andre Nel is a spastic.
by big ted on March 03, 2008
I love the way that he never lets facts get in the way of a good story. Nel has been slapped around by the Australian's in the past, and I suspect he will be slapped around by them in the future. And as for the mighty Kallis, he has averaged 38 with the bat against Australia, and 37 with the ball. I don't even know whether it is worth him taking on Australia again. Ntini is probably the best of them and he still goes for more than 31 against Australia. Perhaps the Stain, and the Dorkel's are better than the rest of the Dangerous Attack. But I suspect that they aren't.
I cannot compare, the all the current Aussie bowlers don't have stats worth mentioning against the Proteas... Shane Warne & McGrath were your strike bowlers against SA, they're now on pension... Tait is gone (although he was useless) So you have Lee, and we've milked him like Guernsey ! Johnson (what a halfwit) is like a rabbit in the headlights in South Africa and Clark (faggot boy) is our personal whipping boy... yeeeehaaaa, come on lads... we're keen to teach you some cricket in 2008 !
Clark versus Sth Africa - 3 tests, 20 wkts @ 15.85, one thing he isn't is South Africa's whipping boy. You are a very stupid boy, Greggy
by Partha Rajagopal on March 03, 2008
Having a dozen pace bowlers does not mean anything. After having played mediocre teams like Pakistan, West Indies, NZ and BD, South Africa will get to meet the first test standard team in India. Dale Steyn is a good fast bowler no doubt, but will have to bowl to the likes of Tendulkar, Dravid, Lakshman, Sehwag and now Gambhir and Rohit Sharma. And on flat wickets. In Spring, it gets bloody hot. If it was October, the ball would move. Steyn's bowling average will be made normal probably.
Go on, I must insist, you're the silly monkey (oops, no racial slur intended) Clark is our pretty boy/girl and don't fib, we love whip, whip, whipping him, he's travelled at 29.15 and if he's you're girl, bring her on !!! 3 TESTS haaaa, haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa, haaaaaaaaaaa ! Professor Clark, no ? Tedster you're such a messer you nupee, the convicts jumping straight outta ya !
Need I say more... Partha ... just because you've been watching India play in Oz doesn't make them worth a thing... If I box against Muhamed Ali, it doesn't make me a boxer... and the Aussie whipped you in the Tests... the Proteas are from Africa mate, here the temperature gets up to 60 degree Celsius and we fry eggs on the pitch ... do you think the South Africans are going to wilt in India's summer... they'll probably think its Hawaii ! Haa haaa... I witnessed Tendulkar and company live here in the flesh, with my own two eyes, and we whipped them then... and I see no reason why we'll stop now... We have a record of enjoying a big of Indian take-away ... no ? Man for man, the Proteas are a better team... I think we'll make India suffer more this season...
Partha... thought you'd like this...India had to wait for a period of 19 years & 230 days before registering its first test victory... something comparable to the Bangas no ?
Greggy Boy, might be time for you to take a litlle break mate. Get a little bit of help?, but only if you think you need it!
by Partha Rajagopal on March 04, 2008
SA is a good team. I have no issues with that. The India that took many years to mature is different from the India now. These Indian players have emerged from a professional system, with a lot of confidence. They are vastly different to the amateurs who played before. SA was bowled out for 84 by Sreesanth, if I remember correctly. Only the bowlers could not reproduced it regularly then. Now the bowlers have matured and Australia is feeling that heat on their home grounds. India didn't get whipped in test matches down under. They should have won the series 2-1 instead of losing 1-2 due to unfortunate circumstances. We'll see how it comes about.
by big ted on March 04, 2008
Partha I think the recent test series (Australia v. India) could have, and probably should have been a drawn series. You might be stretching it a fair bit to say that India should have won the 2nd. test. But you are right, India were not whipped, far from it actually.
by Big Ted on March 04, 2008
Greggy Boy you do know that Clark's first name is Stuart Clark don't you? Are you thinking of Michael Clarke when you are bagging him as being a pretty boy. When you quote him as travelling at 29.15, what are you actually refering to? Or are you just being your usually ill-informed self?
Ted, In my opinion, India had Australia reeling in the first innings of the Sydney test (126 for 6). But poor and repeatedly poor umpiring by Bucknor left Australia with a good first innings total (should have been around 250 max). India did score 500 odd runs in their first innings. If things had gone right, India would have won that match. Australia was given a free ride to victory in that match. In the second innings again Dravid and Ganguly were given out when not out. The momentum was lost. Had India won that test, along with Perth win, it would have been 2-1 against Australia. But one can undo the past. The series even otherwise was very exciting due to the high quality of the contest. There is no team in the world that can match Aussies in making a team earn its win. From that stand point it was very much enjoyable.
Should have been, "One cannot undo the past" in the previous comment. Sorry for the typo.
Partha, you may recall that Tendulker had a very fortunate LBW decision go his way when he was in his 30's in the first innings. I would maintain that that contributed another 200 odd runs (his runs and partnerships) to the Indian 1st innings total. LBW is just as much out as caught behind. It is all conjecture anyway.
by Greg Smith on March 04, 2008
Partha... cricket shouldn't be shrowded in controversial results... my biggest fear in India is exactly this ... can the Proteas really expect to be treated fairly ? Or will the desperate BCCI pull out all the stops to ensure an Indian victory ? I hope you've learned something from your tour in Australia (and their inability to play fairly and squarly) and take your loses IF and WHEN they are dished up to you against South Africa. I'm thinking this will be the true measure of India's status in cricket...
Tedstostrone (<---you like that ?), [its gonna be all over your face pretty soon when SA cum down to OZ] Ntini has just passed Alan Donald's wicket record, Kallis is swinging it like no-one on this planet and has 100+ tests under the belt, Nel's belligerence is world famous (and he's played more that 3 tests against the Aussies) and Steyn and the 2 Morkel Brothers are truly something special... Now, the bottom line is... unless Australians are truly from OUTER SPACE, this attack is going to be felt... all the chin-wagging in the world isn't going to make that somehow go away... the Protea's have the best pace attack in world cricket... that is merely a simple FACT
Yes, we've got well blooded spin too, Harris and Botha are always there... (maybe Robin Peterson too) giving plenty of variation...see ... top skiddy pace(steyn), huge swing(kallis), wide delivery action(ntini), high delivery action(morkel 6 foot 11), reverse swing (morkel), left arm spin(harris), leg spin (Botha), off spin (peterson)... that about covers every type of ball in cricket !
It's so funny when you play with those alias's Teddy... just looking at you refering to MENTAL HEALTH I wonder if YOU'RE a little insecure, finding a headdoctor in Oz shouldn't be too difficult the place is filled with headcases... and don't crack when we whip you this season, its ONLY a game...
After the CB series final win over the Aussies, The Indians have attained a new self-belief that they can go after wins and fight till the end. This killer instinct was missing for a long time and showed up only in patches. My feeling is that repeat good performances against top teams will ingrain that killer instinct. We all thought after the big four retired, the Indian cricket faced a big hole. The youngsters have proved us wrong and there is a lot of spirit in the ranks. SA might find it harder to face the new Indian team.