Top 5 ODI finishers from South Africa

South Africa may have been out of international cricket for around two decades before they made a comeback but their one-day team in the early 1990s surprised everyone with their brand of cricket and since then, they have been regarded as one of the best teams in the world.

Over the years, the South African team has enjoyed a lot of success all over the world and one of the important reasons for that is the fact that they had excellent innings closing batsmen at numbers 5 or 6.

They had superb power hitters lower down the order as well (likes of Klusener and Pollock) but since the article is about the players who batted at 5 or 6, those players will, unfortunately, miss out.

Here is a look at 5 of South Africa's finest 'finishers'.

#5 Hansie Cronje

He was the architect of the great South African team of the 1990s, which gained a reputation of being almost unbeatable at some points and were extremely unfortunate to have not won a World Cup during his time as captain.

However, in addition to his captaincy, Hansie Cronje was also one of the lynchpins of the South African middle-order and was well known for providing the late flourish that is often so necessary in one-dayers.

He played in 188 one-dayers for South Africa from 1992 to 2000 and out of those, the right-handed batsman batted at number 5 or 6 in 96 of them. Cronje was perfectly at home against both pace and spin and had the ability to play all the strokes that one expects from a premium limited overs player. During those years, he was well known for helping South Africa in closing out games with his calm and assured batsmanship.

In 96 games, he made an aggregate of 2686 runs at an average of 41.32 and recorded a strike rate of 81.09. Cronje made 18 half-centuries at those positions but did not score a century.

#4 Jonty Rhodes

He is arguably the greatest fielder to have ever played the game and due to Jonty Rhodes' brilliance as a fielder, his considerable gifts as an innings closing batsman in one day cricket is often not appreciated enough.

The right-handed batsman was the epitome of what commentators call a 'busy player' and over the course of his 11-year career (1992-2003, 245 one-dayers), Rhodes batted at either 5 or 6 on 175 occasions.

His batting depended on rotating the strike as frequently as possible but at the same time he could play his strokes towards the end of the innings and throughout his career, he was a vital factor in the late innings charge for South Africa.

Lastly, unlike some of his teammates, he was also an excellent player of spin and could handle the best spinners in the business with aplomb.

Rhodes remains the highest run scorer in those positions with an aggregate of 4462 runs at an average of 36.87 and he recorded a strike rate of 82.47, which is actually quite high considering the era in which he played. He made 2 centuries and as many as 27 half-centuries.

#3 JP Duminy

The left-hander may have made his one-day international debut for South Africa back in 2004 but it was really after his superb show in Australia in 2008, that he became a fixture in the side and JP Duminy has since been a regular of the one-day setup.

He has played 179 one-dayers for South Africa so far and has batted at the key number 5 or 6 positions in 122 of them. He is one of the best stroke-makers in the South African side and has the ability to play shots all around the wicket.

On the other hand, he can go for the big hits when the need arises and that makes him an extremely dangerous batsman for the opposition. More importantly, Duminy has the game to come in early if wickets fall, play long innings and then provide the final push in the slog overs.

He is South Africa's 2nd highest run scorer in these positions and has made a total of 2970 runs at an average of 35.78. For a player of his quality, the average is perhaps a bit underwhelming. Duminy has scored 1 century and 16 half-centuries during his stint at those positions.

#2 David Miller

He is probably the most exciting batsman to have been produced by South Africa in recent years and David Miller's scintillating power-hitting at number 5 or 6 has added a different edge to the team's approach in the latter part of one-dayers.

The diminutive left-hander can belt the fastest of bowlers in the world all over the ground and change the course of a game fairly quickly. Miller made his debut for South Africa back in 2010 but it was not till a few years ago that he became a regular in the side and he has played exactly 100 one-dayers so far, out of which he has batted at 5 or 6 in 85 games.

He is currently the 5th highest run scorer in those positions with an aggregate of 2146 runs but by the time he finishes his career, he should be the at the top.

He has a strike rate of 103.63 and an average of just over 40, which goes to show the sort of damage that he has caused in his career so far in the latter stages of one-day games.

#1 Mark Boucher

The former South African wicketkeeping great is regarded as one of the best glovemen to have played the game but at the same time, Mark Boucher was one of the world's leading finishers in one-day internationals.

He played in 295 one-dayers for South Africa in a career spanning 13 years (2008-2011) and batted at number 5 or 6 on 139 occasions. Boucher was not the biggest hitter of the ball in the team but what he had was the right temperament to handle tough situations and he was particularly superb when it came to closing out tight chases.

Just when the team needed a boundary, Boucher was capable of hitting one or when the team needed someone to simply rotate the strike in tighter chases on tough wickets, he was just the man to turn to.

Perhaps his finest finisher's innings was the 50 not out (43 balls, 4 fours) he scored against Australia in that famous game at Johannesburg back in 2006, when South Africa chased down 434. In those 139 games, Boucher made 2844 runs at an average of 30.25 and a strike rate of 84.11.