Cricket

Smith will be fit for England

2009-09-30 09:56
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Graeme Smith (File)

Johannesburg - South Africa captain Graeme Smith, who withdrew from the Champions League Twenty20 tournament to continue rehabilitation after elbow surgery, will be fit for England’s tour starting in November, says the team management. 

Smith pulled out of the Cape Cobras squad for the Champions League, scheduled to take place in India in October, on the advice of Cricket South Africa’s medical committee. He underwent surgery on his elbow in June.

“We need to work on strengthening his muscles around the shoulder area and continue his post-operation rehab,” Proteas’ physiotherapist Brandon Jackson said in a statement.

“I am confident he will be ready for action by the start of the England series in November.”

 

Your Comments

Douglas10/3/2009 10:47 AM
Smiths astute captaincy together with his superb batting has helped bring unprecedented success to SA cricket over the past two years. Have you not noticed that almost all his critics are usually ignorant couch potatoes masquerading as cricket aficionados? Only a dumb ignoramus living in cloud cuckoo land would expect the team not to lose some games. Cricket is a complex sport and one generally needs to have grown up with it and to have played it in order to understand its myriad subtleties and complexities We should be grateful that in Smith and Arthur, we have such huge talent at the helm of our national team. Their critics should stop carping as they are not only publicly embarrassing themselves but also exposing their limited knowledge of sport in general and cricket in particular. Douglas.
Brad Naidoo10/1/2009 9:50 AM
@ Poet - DO ANOTHER, DO ANOTHER....
SirGibbs10/1/2009 8:09 AM
@Clubbie - "Really - it's time to take a leaf out of the Aussies book, and rebuild with a motivated passionate team"... a leaf out of their book? do you mean that we need to wait a couple of years untill our senior players retire, then realise that we havent prepared for this, then bring in unknown and unproven players and hope they turn into greats...
cammie9/30/2009 5:38 PM
@ Ben - here, here! You have stated your case succinctly. There may be a plethora of Smith/Protea bashers out there, but there are many folk who see the situation like you do, not least international cricketers who have come to know that Smith is a terrific captain and cricketer! Who do you think he's going be concerned about, a bunch of fickle, instant gratification couch potatoes, or people who love, play understand what it's all about?!
ex cricketer9/30/2009 4:00 PM
Nice one Poet! They are just about all past their sell-by date. Kallis nrver was and never will be a T20 or one-day bat. he just doesnt have that mentality. As for the rest? I RIP. problem solved. Why not go the BEE and AA way? Fire them all and select an all black team like Bafana -- give them a coach who cant speak english or cricket language and needs an interpreter to foul things up further and shout Laduma if and when the get a wicket or hit a four.? Chee, the present team play like a bunch of grannies at a sunday school picnic. Have lost interest in the game.
j9/30/2009 3:08 PM
To all you idi*ts. The success in Aus wasnt thanks to the captaincy of Johan Botha. If any of you can recall they asked Neil Mckenzie to stay in Aus for the ODI series. He was the man who actually mande the calls. Smith is not a bad captain but maybe he can learn from someone such as NM who has a cricketing brain
Gingernut9/30/2009 3:03 PM
@Andrew. Please read the comments submitted by “Roger” and perhaps you will learn something about the requirements of a good captain.
Smith forever9/30/2009 2:37 PM
Andrew seems one of the few people commenting who actually know what they are talking about. Not so sure about the fitness issues though. Seems to me a guy with 4 test 200's is plenty fit enough! Not to mention Graeme is the only bloke involved in 4 opening partnerships of more than 300 (including the world record of 415). How unfit can a player who bats this long possibly be? He also have 10 partnerships of more than 150 in ODI's. As for his captaincy: he have a better record than Alan Border and completely destroys the record of Flemming (who was coonsidered a great captain in his day, albeit in a weak team).
@standing 9/30/2009 1:41 PM
did pollie get nailed for GS poor shot selection or for poor perfomance and lack to understand the game and the DL method. I will not make silly excuses for GS and his team they were poor during the Chams Trophy. I rate Kumar highly but does that mean SL must lodge an enquiry and fire the Cap and Coach after all SL has only 1 Cham Trophy which was shared as no ball bowled. 1 WC as well with all the star playes like Jaya, Mahela and Muli. Your attitude suggest all SL players must go as they have disappointed their country for too long.
Alan9/30/2009 1:30 PM
BRAVO Roger! I endorse what you say 100%
Andrew9/30/2009 1:26 PM
Clearly, there are a lot of people who either have never played cricket or know very little about cricket writing on this blog.To all the Smith bashers: Both Brett Lee and Justin Langer have gone on record recently to say that the captain they admire most in world cricket is G C Smith.Also, I happen to know some of the Proteas players and every man to the core is 100% behind their captain.Do some research please before writing garbage.Smith is the only man for the job and he is an outstanding batsman.He can get fitter though, no doubt!
Roger9/30/2009 1:03 PM
I am a business coach and work with business people to help them achieve better result. Generally the people I work with know the theory of the job, they just don’t always know how to get it done. I think that the current SA Cricket team has the same problem. Our bowling attack is weak. This has been the case for almost 2 years now. This means that the batters are often chasing big totals and that’s just no fair on them. This is especially the case when some of batsmen are the type that need time to play themselves in – Smith and Kallis are example. Somehow we have succeeded even with this poor attack, probably because the opposition does not know our new bowlers so for a while they have the advantage – v d Merwe, Parnell etc. Remember how Malinga decimated out team when we first played him. Now everyone is used to his action and he is no longer so effective. With a few exceptions – Albie Morkel for one – our bowlers have the ability, but they seem to be badly prepared for competition. To be a top sportsman you not only need to be technically the best you also have to the psychologically the best. I think our bowlers have a long way to go in this area. Under pressure they seem to turn into boys rather than men. It’s when you are at the top that you need that extra mental strength to stay there. For years Australia dominated world cricket because their team had more than just skill, they had Emotional Intelligence; they looked like men doing a man’s job. But watch Steyn when under pressure. When calm and collected he is a great bowler but in tight situations he turns hyperactive. See how he fidgets during the walk back to his mark and then just turns and races in – trying to bowl faster and faster. There seems to be no pause for thought with the result that he becomes more and more erratic. Ntini was the same. The more stressed he became the faster he tried to bowl and the worse he got. . So what can be done about this? Well, our coaching team needs to identify the problem and start working on it. However this will take time so in the meantime we need to try and create calmness in the team. This means ensuring that we have a captain that is sympathetic to the situation. I think that the best captain we have in SA is Johan Botha. When I see him captaining SA I get the feeling that the team responds better to him than they do to Smith. He seems to remain calm and secure in his ability when under stress. I think he has the Emotional Intelligence so badly needed in our team and this rubs off on his colleagues. He looks like the sort of person one naturally likes – a born leader. I have never met Smith and really can only judge him by what I see on the TV. But when we get a close-up of his face I see someone with a strong need for personal success and, perhaps, a mean streak. I personally would not like to be in a team that he captains. So please SA Cricket, get stuck into creating some EI in the team. Get someone who understands how this is done and get moving. We have the time before the next big competition to do this.
Springbok Fan9/30/2009 1:01 PM
Who cares, we will beat England and stay # 1 in all forms of the game. The moment there is another competition we will choke. With bowlers like Steyn who thinks they are the best but actually have no idea of constant line and lenght we will never be a threat in any World Cup.
Poet9/30/2009 12:54 PM
A Poem.... There once was a team of Chokers, Dismally captained by the greatest of Jokers,....In the Champs Trophy they failed to qualify, The paying public wanted to know why?....After all, Steyn said we are the best, We dont even need to prepare, after our rest....Engrave the trophy with our name, No other team can match our game....But Slinger and Mendes, along they came, And exposed the cracks in our game....Then the Sweet Chariot swung low, And the Poms landed a killer blow.....No runner allowed, that was not fair!, The unconditioned Captain did declare....,Not fair not fair, screamed Mickey Mouse!!, Wrong pitch wrrong pitch, he did grouse....Fact remains, the cupboard is bare, And Steyn can be heard nowhere....So dear friends, if WC 2011 is to be a realistic dream, Drop the chokers, and build a new team.
Oscar9/30/2009 12:28 PM
Who cares if Smith is fit? The only trophy he will ever get is the Oscar. He spends so much time watching himself on the big screen that he forgets that he is paid to be the captain of the team. He is not and will never be a good captain !
Standing at Point9/30/2009 12:25 PM
Lets go back to the locally held WC, when Pollie was Cappie. One Mr Smith chipped the ball to mid wicket in a rather feeble attempt when all was in order and got himself out, correct. Pollie got nailled for the first round disaster and national disgrace. So, Smith take it like you give it son. Sword, fall on it, bye bye.
Anon9/30/2009 12:17 PM
@Pshem - actually - one man can go a long way to making a team, especially if he is the Captain. And that is exactly why Smith is a problem - he should not be the Captain. His poor captaincy is half the reason why our team folds so easily in Tournaments. He deserves his title of Captain Choker. After our latest little failure, I just love the new Protea name that somebody coined - Ama Choke Choke. LMML
Ant9/30/2009 12:08 PM
Realist - we got a klap of note by England in the last ODI series - how does this make Smith a world class ODI batsman? Smith is not a good ODI Captain - he is ok as an opeing bat though. But Gibbs, Duminy, Albie, and one of the Spinners should go, and maybe also Boucher? Sure - we will have to have a period if rebuilding if we drop a lot of our squad, but in the log term it will pay off. The current squad just does not cut it! (Nor does Arthur).
Pshem9/30/2009 12:02 PM
Who cares if Smith is fit or not? One man can not win a whole tournament! Better make sure that the whole team is mentally fit, maybe then they can achieve something (doubtful, but hopeful)!
Clubbie9/30/2009 11:51 AM
to AMAZED : Ponting IS the best Captain in World Cricket today. Here we are talking ODI, but as a comment on the Ashes - Aus has a side under construction, and will soon be unquestionably the World's top side again. The thing with Ponting is that he is a very smart tactician, can read an ODI game on his feet, and make the changes he needs. Most of all though, the Aussie team respects the man as a cricketer, and that motivates the team. I (my personal opinion) do not think Smith has any of those attributes as a Captain, and he is also not helped by MA, who is too conservative amongst the many other problems he has. I have not ever considered Smith to be Capt. Amazing in the ODI format - I think he is the wrong man for the job of Capt. although I do respect his batting ability a lot. And lets be honest here - the World Cup is an ODI tournament, and if we want to be able to ever compete in that, we should be able to compete in the Champs Trophy. But now people are trying to cover up our shocking performance with excuses like..long lay off's, wrong venue, unimportant tournament etc etc. That is just rubbish - if we were a professional outfit like Aus, we would be prepared, play at 100% of our ability, and approach the tournament with BMT killer instinct. But we choked yet again. And it's not just Smith and MA at fault here - plenty of the senior players have to shoulder some blame. Really - it's time to take a leaf out of the Aussies book, and rebuild with a motivated passionate team. It's the only way to grow the spectatorship and sport. Biff's boys are NOT delivering, and I would like to see the axe as a long standing, money paying supporter of cricket.
Ashley Smith9/30/2009 11:44 AM
Ben - you're my hero at least someone out there has some sense!
SwingLow9/30/2009 11:27 AM
Well there you have it, post-operation rehab AKA fitness progarm AKA anti-cramp training. I cant wait for this Test series to start, i'm going to love it, when England win, who you going to blame this time, wait i know, the manufacturers of cricket bats, i mean thats the only people you have not blamed yet.
Realist9/30/2009 11:25 AM
The calls to sack Smith etc is absolutely ludicrous! Smith and Kallis have some of the best records in all forms of the game. Smith showed against England that he is one of the best batsmen in the world. The fact that we hadn't played any cricket for close on 3 months was, in my opinion anyway, the contributing factor to our downfall in the Champions Trophy. All the other teams played a series recently and it was blatantly obvious that we were undercooked in all departments. Yes, we can blame our bowlers and our batsmen, but there is no substitute for time in the middle. Yes, we failed in another big tournie, but sacking the whole team is just ludicrous. I do, however, believe that the time has come to drop Boucher. He hasn't made a run in 2 years. And batting him at 6 was silly.
Carrots9/30/2009 11:23 AM
Hahaaa @ Riaan. Who cares anyway if Smith is fit - we are more interested in Under-6 Netball than watching grown boys with big sticks and even bigger egos choke. Been there many times, seen it, and now burned the T shirt.
Ben9/30/2009 11:19 AM
Come on people. At least think before you spout your nonsense arguments! re Smith not being fit for the champions trophy : why is he the leading run scorer then? Re Smith not being a leader : Did you forget we won a series in Australia and in England in the last year? The Champions Trophy is no reason to suddenly forget about the achievements of the last 2 years. Stop overreacting, jeez! The nature of ODIs is that a team can win with just 2 or 3 good performances. In test cricket the whole team has to perform. In 20/20 1 player can win it for the team (Afridi in the recent world cup as an example). Don't take ODI cricket this seriously. We should much rather be the best test team, and up there with ODIs, than the other way around. Then the ODI team will gain the confidence and freedom to win these lottery types of tournaments as well.
Amazed9/30/2009 11:18 AM
Clubbie, what are talking about - Utter nonsense! Pointing, a world class captain, the 1st Aussie Captain to loose 2 Ashes! With regards to Smith, 9 months ago, he was "Captain Amazing"? The guys had 3 months off and it showed, they got it wrong, so did Sri Lanka, West Indies and either India or Aus. There's no 2nd chances in this format.
riaan s9/30/2009 11:08 AM
Yeh right, Smith will be fit, Kallis will loose 200 kilos, Gibbs will behave himself , the prima donna SA team will get back to earth, has beens will retire, Mickey Mouse will learn to coach and little green men from outer space do actually inhabit our planet.
Clubbie9/30/2009 10:59 AM
I agree with Standing at Point below. Smith is neither a motivator nor a leader, and is surely (along with Arthur) a huge part of our ODI mess. And now the latest is that the ICC Champs trophy is inconsequential???? Helloooooo - it is the MINI WORLD CUP!!!!! And here we are, underprepared, unfit, unmotivated, big mouthed, full of nonsense excuses...... Sorry guys - but my personal hope is that if Smith is not hoofed out of the captaincy by November, I hope he is unfit to play. Strauss got it right when he refused the runner because of Poor Conditioning. But we are a gullible lot of supporters here in SA, and swallow the excuses time and again, hook, line and sinker! These guys have no excuses - you dont hear Ponting winge and whine if they lose - they work on the problems. But then again - Australia does have a world class captain....
Standing at Point9/30/2009 10:45 AM
Well, here we have it, Cricket SA endorsing that Smith wasnt fit for the Trophy series. I mean who are they fooling. No wonder no one goes to watch these teams perform because its a stich up with the cronnies and habngers on milking the cricket coffers which appear to be succeeding in melting performances by once decent players. This entire team needs to be dropped and broken down to a performance test at provincial level over a season. Earning the right to play for the big cash instead of fighting internal squabbles amongst themselves for the cash should prevail. Get a life, they failed on how many occassions, have the rugby guys stuck with the same team since the 1999 world cup to win the last one, no. Hallo, national approach is to follow a successful solution , pick on form and dump the tossers. Kallis , Gibbs, Boucher and Smith out. The Aussies did it and they will probably be right there at the next WC, wait and see. RSA, well, it will be Smith standing there again with his classic hang dog look, as he is the problem. He is the problem because he cant see past his chommie approach to man management , where he is clueless. His body language toward Parnell during the England onslaught was schoolboy prefect ish in full glare. Smith has been the worst captain to develop as a person of the current bunch. Strauss is a natural leader, Ponting leads by example, Vittori good man skills, Dhoni has a team around him. Smith by comparison has a clomp of some chommies and if he fails everyone knows in the team tht he expects the team to fail, so no team. I could ramble on and on but when time is up for losers losers must be discarded.
Standing at Point9/30/2009 10:40 AM
Well, here we have it, Cricket SA endorsing that Smith wasnt fit for the Trophy series. I mean who are they fooling. No wonder no one goes to watch these teams perform because its a stich up with the cronnies and habngers on milking the cricket coffers which appear to be succeeding in melting performances by once decent players. This entire team needs to be dropped and broken down to a performance test at provincial level over a season. Earning the right to play for the big cash instead of fighting internal squabbles amongst themselves for the cash should prevail. Get a life, they failed on how many occassions, have the rugby guys stuck with the same team since the 1999 world cup to win the last one, no. Hallo, national approach is to follow a successful solution , pick on form and dump the tossers. Kallis , Gibbs, Boucher and Smith out. The Aussies did it and they will probably be right there at the next WC, wait and see. RSA, well, it will be Smith standing there again with his classic hang dog look, as he is the problem. He is the problem because he cant see past his chommie approach to man management , where he is clueless. His body language toward Parnell during the England onslaught was schoolboy prefect ish in full glare. Smith has been the worst captain to develop as a person of the current bunch. Strauss is a natural leader, Ponting leads by example, Vittori good man skills, Dhoni has a team around him. Smith by comparison has a clomp of some chommies and if he fails everyone knows in the team tht he expects the team to fail, so no team. I could ramble on and on but when time is up for losers losers must be discarded.
Ant 9/30/2009 10:22 AM
That will be fantastic if Smith is fit - unlike in the Champs Trophy! (Or in our case - the Chumps Trophy). Let's hope this time round the squad is fit and prepared for cricket! (oh and Steyn, AB - please don't make any predictions - If you really want egg on your faces again, I will sponsor the eggs).
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