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South Africa’s T20I transition sees Quinton de Kock, Temba Bavuma and Reeza Hendricks absent. Ryan Rickelton and Lhuan-dre Pretorius may lead the highest order against Australia.
South Africa’s Ryan Rickelton (Instagram)
With Quinton de Kock, Temba Bavuma, and Reeza Hendricks absent, South Africa is gearing up for a fresh start at the highest order in T20Is. Despite no official confirmation on de Kock’s T20I retirement or the futures of Hendricks and Bavuma, the team is clearly in transition. Leading this transformation may very well be Ryan Rickelton and Lhuan-dre Pretorius.
Each Rickelton and Pretorius are left-handed wicketkeepers. Rickelton had a standout season in Tests and ODIs for South Africa and took part in his first Indian Premier League (IPL) earlier this yr.
“I’m still trying to determine myself within the T20 side but I don’t think there’ll be any expectation for me to alter anything that I’ve been doing in these last two years,” Rickelton said.
“It’s just a chance for me to hopefully claim that opening spot for this South African side, going into the World Cup and further on past that,” he added.
South Africa is scheduled to play three T20Is against Australia starting August 10, with regular captain Aiden Markram returning to bolster the highest order, alongside the experienced Rassie van der Dussen in the center. Rickelton believes their presence will allow him the liberty to specific himself.
“The way in which the team is structured suits the mould of how they need me to play too, so I’m pretty comfortable with what’s required,” he said.
“I’m at all times seeking to land that first punch and get the side off to a superb start irrespective of who’s alongside me at the highest,” he noted.
What’s Next For Ryan Rickelton?
Rickelton, together with Markram, Tristan Stubbs, Marco Jansen, and Kagiso Rabada, was rested through the recent tri-series in Zimbabwe. Nonetheless, that break is over, and the team now faces an intense eight-month stretch of cricket, including tours, World Cups, and franchise leagues. The road ahead is demanding, with South Africa heading to Australia first, followed by a white-ball series in England, after which the beginning of their World Test Championship (WTC) title defence in Pakistan. This can be followed by a full tour of India, the SA20, a temporary home series against the West Indies, and eventually, the T20 World Cup. After that, many players will head straight into the IPL, extending their schedule to almost 10 continuous months of cricket.
Rickelton, who opted out of playing within the Major League Cricket (MLC) this yr, is learning to administer workload and stay fit through a packed season.
“This was my first IPL yr and it’s long three months in India which might really stretch you, mentally greater than anything,” he said.
“I’d still prefer to play leagues when the chance comes along and next yr there’s a break after the IPL so there’s some space in between,” he added.
“When you get to the groove of playing numerous cricket, it could actually be very nice while you’re playing quite well but it could actually even be quite dark in case you’re not playing too well. It’s more attempting to manage the space mentally. That’s probably the balance that I’m attempting to walk in the intervening time,” he noted.
Since being a part of South Africa’s WTC final-winning squad at Lord’s in June, Rickelton has enjoyed a rare six-week break. In contrast, Pretorius has had a busy time, making his Test debut against Zimbabwe and scoring a century, while also being shuffled up and down the T20I batting order, from opener to No. 5 and back.
“I haven’t been hitting the ball too well these last couple of days but I’m not too anxious. We’ve played numerous cricket this yr already and it’s not something that you just just lose full stop. It can take a couple of more sessions for me to get going,” he said.
“But I’m watching the remaining of the fellows, they’re really hitting the ball quite nicely and you may see the fellows which have been playing are moving so much higher than a couple of of the fellows which have taken just a little little bit of day off,” he added.
The remainder period is officially over now. South Africa begins an important phase under head coach Shukri Conrad, with two ICC tournaments and a brand new World Test Championship cycle on the horizon.
“When you have a look at the fixtures lined up for the T20 World Cup, we’ve got some big competition and a few big rivals,” Rickelton said, as quoted from ESPNcricinfo. “If we are able to put a superb foot forward and play quite well and match what we wish to try to replicate in a couple of months’ time, especially against quality opposition, that’s really vital to the team and the individuals as well. We spoke about it as a bunch, we now have a chance to try to win a series in Australia, which doesn’t come around that usually, and we’re looking forward to obviously cementing our own places and playing well for South Africa,” he noted.
(With inputs from ANI)
A team of reporters, writers and editors brings you news, analyses, features, live scores, results, stats and every thing that’s cricket from everywhere in the globe. Follow @cricketnext
A team of reporters, writers and editors brings you news, analyses, features, live scores, results, stats and every thing that’s cricket from everywhere in the globe. Follow @cricketnext
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