Stubbs stands apart amid woeful Proteas batting display

The Proteas suffered a second 3-0 T20 series defeat against the West Indies this year with their eight-wicket defeat in Trinidad on Tuesday night.

While losses are understandable given the squad rotation that’s been implemented for bilateral series, the same problems with the bat continually cropping up should be of deep concern for the team’s management. 

The West Indies won the third match of the series at Brian Lara Academy in Tarouba comfortably reaching a readjusted Duckworth/Lewis/Stern target of 116 with 22 balls to spare. 

The match started an hour late because of rain and more inclement weather midway through the fifth over of the Proteas innings saw it reduced to 13 overs a side. 

Though the rhythm of the innings was upset by the delays, South Africa struggled to come to terms with a pitch that turned in the opening period, causing openers Reeza Hendricks and Ryan Rickelton plenty of discomfort.

“The conditions were tough, the ball turned a lot in the first four overs,” Proteas head coach Rob Walter said. “It became better to bat from about the sixth over, but then it was wet when we were in the field and the ball was difficult for the spinners to grip.”

The Proteas reached 108/4 thanks to another stunning innings from Tristan Stubbs, who bashed 40 off 15 balls, hitting five fours and three sixes. 

Alick Athanaze’s wicket in the first over briefly shook the West Indies. However, Shai Hope’s unbeaten 42 off 24 balls and then typically flamboyant shot-making from Nicholas Pooran (35 off 13 balls) and Shemron Hetmyer (31 off 17 balls) saw the home team comfortably reach the required total. 

“We didn’t get enough runs, we didn’t bowl well enough to make a game of it. We were put under pressure over the three games and weren’t up to the mark.”

An inexperienced bowling line-up, such as the one South Africa played with during the series can be excused for the errors they made, but the batting needs to be looked at, particularly at the top of the order. 

Quinton de Kock’s absence was certainly felt, with Ryan Rickelton failing to make proper use of the opportunities granted to him in the series. Scores of 7, 20 and, on Tuesday night, 27, weren’t sufficiently impactful. More concerning, however, are the contributions from the three most experienced players, skipper Aiden Markram, Hendricks and Rassie van der Dussen. 

The latter was dropped for the last match after a dreadful showing in the second game where he made 17 off 24 balls, scuppering South Africa’s chances in the run chase. 

Markram has battled to find consistency since being made captain a year ago, while Hendricks’ form has dropped off a cliff since the World Cup. 

Walter, however, praised Stubbs’s performances, saying: “'Stubbo' batted in three different situations and really stood out in two of them.”

Stubbs was the leading run-scorer across both teams in the series, making 144 runs, with his 76 in the first match, which came amid a top order collapse, indicative of the maturity in his game.

“He showed a broad range of shot options, played well against spin, played well against the seam and dominated the back end of the innings today [Tuesday]. It's exciting to see a batter of his quality able to deliver a performance in different situations,” Walter said.