The Proteas men’s team are known for falling short of glory in ICC events, but in the World Test Championship (WTC) there is genuine belief that South Africa have the ability to go all the way.
The history of Proteas teams at limited overs Cricket World Cup is littered with heartbreak, but in Test cricket it is quite different.
The Proteas Test team have achieved many milestones since readmission to international cricket, chief among them the number one ranking in the format and series victories against England, Australia and India over the years.
Arguably the best of those sides was the Proteas team which triumphed against hosts England in 2012. Winning the three-match series 2-1 with victories coming at The Oval and Lord’s was the pinnacle of SA Test cricket.
Number one ranking
The win in the third and final Test at Lord’s also saw South Africa earn the number one ranking, and the ICC mace was presented to them for their achievement.
That would be the equivalent of winning what is now the WTC, which was launched in its current format in 2019.
That team in 2012, though, was probably SA’s best ever. It was a side led by Graeme Smith, and included superstars Hashim Amla, Jacques Kallis, AB de Villiers, Vernon Philander, Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel.
It would be difficult to not include any of those seven names in a best-ever all-time Proteas Test lineup.
However, this current Proteas squad clearly are not concerned about reputation as they cannot compare to that 2012 side. Led by Temba Bavuma, as the leading run-scorer for the Proteas over the last five years, a somewhat inexperienced team is rising up.
Following their 2-0 Test series win in Bangladesh, it meant South Africa had their WTC destiny in their own hands. If they won all four of their remaining Tests in South Africa from November to January, they would book their place in the WTC final.
Those four matches will first see the Proteas take on Sri Lanka in two Tests, before another couple against Pakistan over the Christmas and New Year period.
The first Test against Sri Lanka began on Wednesday, and after a torrid weather-interrupted first day in Durban, South Africa were able to gain control of the match. Bavuma held his side’s innings together first up, as he top-scored with 70 as South Africa could only manage 191.
Quest for glory in tatters
It seemed as if South Africa’s quest to make the WTC final lay in tatters, but then Sri Lanka came in to bat. Allrounder Marco Jansen was the star with incredible figures of 7/13 as Sri Lanka were blown away for 42.
From that point on, it was all South Africa with centuries in the third innings from Tristan Stubbs and Bavuma ensured Sri Lanka had no chance of victory.
It means that the Proteas would still be on track to make that all-important WTC final. This from a side that is not blessed with superstars like past generations, with the exception of Kagiso Rabada perhaps.
And while Rabada is far and away the best of the Proteas attack of the current generation, Bavuma is arguably the superstar character of the side.
The skipper usually produces his best when the Proteas batsmen are in trouble, which is backed up by his performances in Test matches over the last five years.
In fact, over the last three years, Bavuma has averaged 50 (2023), 40 (2022) and 53 (2021). In 2024, he has already scored over 280 runs at an average of over 50.
This combination of Bavuma’s fighting spirit, Rabada’s brilliance and a rapidly improving Proteas side means they can punch well above their weight in Test cricket. And there’s every chance they could make the WTC final, and win it for good measure.
If they do that, there’s every chance that in 10 years time we may be talking about players like Jansen, Tony de Zorzi, Wiaan Mulder and a few others in the same breath as the Rabada, Kallis and Smith as Proteas legends.