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Bloemfontein - Johan Botha’s official debut as the captain of the Proteas’ Pro20 squad could hardly have gone more smoothly than it did as he led his side to a seven-wicket victory over Zimbabwe at the OUTsurance Oval on Friday night with more than four overs to spare.
Gallery: SA v Zimbabwe
He did lose the toss and he did have a catch dropped off his bowling but the only real setback was the injury suffered by pace spearhead Morne Morkel while fielding after bowling his first two overs.
The official diagnosis was a sprained ligament of the right ankle and it seems unlikely that the younger Morkel will be fit to play in the second Pro20 match at Kimberley’s Diamond Oval on Sunday (2.30pm start).
It meant that Botha had to get two overs out of JP Duminy on a surface that did not really suit spin bowlers as the ball came on to the bat very comfortably. In addition the Bloemfontein ground possesses one of the slickest outfields in the country and the ball flies as rapidly through the air as it does on the Highveld.
As Botha pointed out the real concern is that the Proteas could go into next week’s ODI series without both Morkel and Dale Steyn and that would leave a huge gap in the resources of any team.
Gallery: SA v Zimbabwe
He did lose the toss and he did have a catch dropped off his bowling but the only real setback was the injury suffered by pace spearhead Morne Morkel while fielding after bowling his first two overs.
The official diagnosis was a sprained ligament of the right ankle and it seems unlikely that the younger Morkel will be fit to play in the second Pro20 match at Kimberley’s Diamond Oval on Sunday (2.30pm start).
It meant that Botha had to get two overs out of JP Duminy on a surface that did not really suit spin bowlers as the ball came on to the bat very comfortably. In addition the Bloemfontein ground possesses one of the slickest outfields in the country and the ball flies as rapidly through the air as it does on the Highveld.
As Botha pointed out the real concern is that the Proteas could go into next week’s ODI series without both Morkel and Dale Steyn and that would leave a huge gap in the resources of any team.
