What’s the story?
South Africa’s head coach Russell Domingo has slammed middle-order batsman Rilee Rossouw for his decision to abandon ship to England. The 42-year old admitted to feeling let down by the middle-order batsman’s move to sign a 3-year Kolpak deal with Hampshire County club.
In case you didn’t know...
On the same day wherein seam bowler Kyle Abbott announced his departure from the Proteas set-up, the left-hander followed suit by signing a Kolpak deal with the same County side. As a result of the controversial quota system and the weakening South African Rand, the duo have sought greener pastures which should effectively put an end to their international careers. In fact, both their national contracts have been terminated.
Heart of the matter
Domingo fumed, “I haven’t heard from Rilee since we left Australia, to be honest. Some of us have tried to get hold of him and this is the truth – we got an email from him off his iPhone telling us he's signed a Kolpak deal. He spelled my name wrong for starters. He wrote one 'L' instead of two 'Ls'. That’s where we are. I am bitterly disappointed in him.”
Not surprisingly, he reflected on Rossouw’s poor start in ODIs and why the team management continued to persist with him. From his first six matches, the southpaw had scored as many as four ducks. However, his playing style, which evoked comparisons with the iconic AB de Villiers, convinced the think tank to give him a longer rope.
The head coach claimed, “He toured Australia as the back-up Test batsman. He was the next batsman in. He’s played One-Day cricket for us and lots of T20 cricket for us. He’s the guy we backed after five noughts. If that was a player of colour who got five noughts, everyone would have said 'transformation’.
“But he got five noughts and we thought this was a guy who could play the closest level to AB de Villiers. He’s a guy we’ve invested in massively and I am bitterly disappointed.”
What next?
South Africa have brought in uncapped pacer Duanne Olivier as Abbott’s replacement for the third Test in Johannesburg. The focus will soon shift to the white-ball formats with a 3-match T20I series and 5-match ODI series scheduled against Sri Lanka. Aside from de Villiers‘ return bolstering the team, the presence of talented options in the domestic circuit could lessen the immediate impact.
As for Rossouw and also Abbott, the 2017 County Championship beginning in April will be the next assignment. Having narrowly escaped relegation in the previous season, Hampshire will be counting on the duo to make a mark.
Sportskeeda’s Take
The quota system and its accompanying transformation targets are perceived as a highly contentious issue in South Africa. With the black African community forming the vast majority of the population, the move has been intended to take cricket (a predominantly white majority sport in the country) to all demographic groups.
However, the caveat could include massive talent drain in the intermittent period. While the ‘reverse-racism’ policy (in reference to the infamous Apartheid Era) is one for the system, players like Rossouw and Abbott can argue that patriotism does not help pay their bills.
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