WHILE the South African cricket fraternity still mourns the loss of the country’s first ever World Cup final, the Proteas return to the Caribbean as they continue their search for a breakthrough world title in the ICC Test Championship, when they come up against the West Indies in a two-match Test series.
Coach Shukri Conrad has announced his 16-man touring squad comprising a good mix of youth and experience, and the tour could offer an opportunity to some players to cement their places in the side, while for others this could be a chance to learn.
But for Tristan Stubbs, the stage is set for him to flourish in the game’s longest format.
The Proteas enjoyed a successful start to their 2021-23 ICC Test Championship but their road to the final at The Oval in London took a turn for the worst as India and Australia leapfrogged them to reach the final after SA led the way for most of the campaign.
South Africa finished third and looked on as Australia handed India a heavy 209-run defeat to win the second edition of the championship.
After a disappointing end to their recent T20 World Cup campaign, the Proteas’ bid to break their duck in ICC events restarts at Queen’s Park Oval in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago, where the Windies host a Proteas side that will have a lot to prove.
Stubbs has been a man on the rise in the last two years. Whether in the red and blue of the Delhi Capitals, or the green and gold of South Africa, the 23-year-old batter has found a sweet spot and has quickly grown a reputation as one of the best in the business.
Much of his exploits have come in the T20 format, but since taking charge of the Test team, Conrad has taken a liking to Stubbs and handed him his debut against India last summer.
What could have been a dream debut didn’t quite turn out so, as a tricky Newlands pitch was just too hot to handle for most of the batters with the entire contest lasting just over 106 overs and Stubbs only managing three and one respectively.
But his efforts at the T20 World Cup, where South Africa made things difficult for themselves by losing wickets in power plays, saw him calmly rescue the situation in a more patient manner, and that showed there is more to him than meets the eye.
Stubbs’ first-class best score of 302 not out for the Warriors lasted eight hours and 11 minutes, showing off his full array of talent and his ability to meet the demands of batting long, and going through the gears in building a match-winning innings.
Stubbs has also scored a century for South Africa A against Sri Lanka A in Colombo in a four-day match.
Naturally an attack-minded player, the youngster carries a punch, and is all set to bat at No 3 against the West Indies.
And he could be a player who moves a lot of games forward for the South Africans in future, especially if he survives the new ball.