Cricket
Duminy's spot not guaranteed
2009-02-02 21:09
Email | Print
Jaco van der Merwe
Johannesburg. – JP Duminy realises that his outstanding batting on the recent tour of Australia has not guaranteed him a place in the Proteas’ line-up for the home series.
Duminy was the find of the tour after replacing the injured Ashwell Prince in the Test side. He followed up his 246 runs in the Tests with innings’ of 78 and 69* in the Twenty20 games and had an average of 59.3 in the one-day series.
Apart from his batting he also impressed with excellent fielding and proved a handy part-time off-spinner.
The reality for Duminy, however, is that he may have to watch the first Test against the Aussies at the Wanderers, starting on February 26, from the stands.
Should Prince recover in time from a thumb injury, he is likely to take his place in the middle order.
“The places in the Test side are limited. All I can do is carry on scoring runs because then the situation will take care of itself,” said Duminy.
The 24-year-old left-hander also realises he’ll have to stay one step ahead of the Aussies if he plays at the Wanderers. He had the element of surprise in his favour when he made his debut in Perth. Now the Aussies know all about him.
“The Aussies had not seen much of me before the first Test and would have done their homework by now. But I see it as a challenge and can’t wait to play them again,” the batting star said.
“Expectations will be very high, but that is a good thing. You set your goals every season and try to stick to them.”
Duminy did not expect to achieve so much success when he packed his bags for Australia. There were so many highlights on tour that he struggles to single one out.
“My fifty in the first Test was a highlight because I contributed to the successful chase of a record score,” he said.
“Obviously I have to single out my 166 in the first innings in Melbourne as a highlight. There is no better place to score your first century than the MCG. It was incredible. It’s overwhelming. I could never have believed two months ago that I would be in this position.
“I probably toured for a year with the Test side without getting the chance to play. I did not really think I would get game time.”