South Africa's tour of Sri Lanka: Five Proteas players who can make an impact

South Africa have landed in Sri Lanka to play a five-match one-day series and three T20 internationals marking a new beginning for them as Russell Domingo takes over the team. Domingo was the assistant coach of the team during Gary Kirsten’s two-year reign and hence it is likely to be a smooth transition.

The team will be without Jacques Kallis, as well as Graeme Smith, and is not drastically different from the squad that travelled to England for the Champions Trophy. South Africa performed moderately well at the competition but they were unable to get the monkey of the ‘chokers’ tag off their backs. Conditions in Sri Lanka will be drastically different from those that they came across in England and they will need to negotiate with a great deal of spin.

South Africa will be without their most lethal asset, that is Dale Steyn but fortunately, Morne Morkel has overcome his injury woes in time to be a part of this tour. The bowling department lacks that spark without Steyn but there is enough diversity and heat in the attack to challenge the Sri Lankan batting line-up. South Africa’s performance with the willow was more than satisfactory at the Champions Trophy, until they capitulated against some quality swing bowling on an assisting surface against England in the semi-finals. AB de Villiers and Hashim Amla will bear a lot of the responsibility in that relatively inexperienced batting order.

Here is a list of five players who can make an impact in the series against the Sri Lankan lions:

5. Chris Morris

Morris flew to England after Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel were sidelined due to injury during the Champions Trophy. He made an immediate impact giving an impressive return of 2/25 in his 7 overs on his ODI debut. He has the experience of bowling in the sub-continent due to his stint in the IPL with Chennai Super Kings, where he was one of the highest wicket takers. Morris will have to compete for a place in the playing eleven, given that South Africa might choose to go with 3 fast bowlers (Morkel, Tsotsobe, Kleinveldt/Morris, Phangiso), whereas JP Duminy and others can pitch in with the rest of the overs. However, his performance against the SL Board President’s XI encourages his inclusion as he finished with 3/27.

4. Faf du Plessis

Faf du Plessis has been promoted to the role of vice-captain in this side. He is 29 years of age but only has 37 ODIs to his name and he has not reached the 1000 run mark as yet. His performances with the bat have been underwhelming in the shorter format of the game, but his fledgling Test record speaks volumes of the talent that he has. The contrast is startling as he averages just below 70 in the most testing format of the game. He had a couple of reasonable starts while batting in the Champions Trophy, but he was hampered by wickets falling around him as he failed to convert those 30s, 40s into a match winning innings. He is at a stage of his career where he needs to hit peak-form and play an integral role in South Africa’s vision for the 2014 World T20 and 2015 World Cup.

3. Morne Morkel

Morne Morkel will spearhead South Africa’s bowling attack as he makes a return to the side after spending a brief while in the dressing room at the Champions Trophy due to an injury that he picked up in the first competitive match of the tournament against India. The bowler has developed his set of skills over the last few years and will be a potent weapon if he can keep-up his line and length. His statistics do justice to his ability as in 61 appearances in the 50 over format, he has taken 104 wickets including 6 very impressive four-wicket spells and one five-for. It is said that bowlers hunt in pairs and having Dale Steyn at the other end has certainly helped him. Thus, it will be interesting to see how he bears the responsibility of being the lead bowler of the side.

2. AB De Villiers

The South African captain will be wearing many hats in this tour, but his performance with the bat will be the most crucial. He is the ideal modern-day batsman in many senses. He has the ability to drop anchor and accumulate runs when the going gets tough, whereas he can come lower-down in the order to use the long-handle, to make the best use of the power-play overs and fielding restrictions. He has the technique to occupy the wicket when the pace battery is getting the ball to swing and can counter-attack spinners with his swift foot-work. He has the innovation to release pressure when runs dry out. He just needs to adapt to the slow and dry conditions of the sub-continent and he will be able to make a valuable contribution in this series.

1. Hashim Amla

The opening-batsman has proved himself in the shorter version of game as well, even though he retains the strictly traditional style of batting. He is a fluent driver, presents a straight bat, and times the ball beautifully. He played a pleasing knock of 81 runs against Pakistan in a crucial Champions Trophy encounter and has been in-form ever since he made his return to the Proteas side. His career average of over 55.00 runs in the shorter format of the game looks even more impressive considering that he has made these runs batting at the top of the innings negotiating with the new ball. He will be given the responsibility of laying down the groundwork for a massive total.