Shukri Conrad has announced his white-ball squads for the August tour to Australia.
While some of the players who have been doing duty in the experimental outfit that’s playing in the tri-series in Zimbabwe have played their way into the mix – Dewald Brevis and Lhuan-dre Pretorius, for example – it goes without saying that the team named for the trip down under is very much a top-strength side.
Aiden Markram is back along with the likes of Ryan Rickelton and Tristan Stubbs. Heinrich Klaasen has retired from international duty while Marco Jansen is injured, and David Miller is playing abroad.
Conrad’s casualty
The biggest casualty is undoubtedly Reeza Hendricks, the veteran opener who is currently with the team in Zimbabwe.
In naming the team, Conrad was clear in terms of his stance on Hendricks, saying: “There are players who have flown past Reeza. He’s been a great performer for South Africa, especially in this format, but it’s no secret that Aiden and Ryan are my preferred opening batters.
“It makes it difficult for Hendricks to fit in, and there are guys who can open and bat in the middle, like Rassie van der Dussen and Lhuan-dre Pretorius, who give you that cover if you need it.
“It’s unfortunate that it’s fallen this way on Reeza, but I feel there are other guys who give us better options.”
Which all means that Reeza could be playing his last game for the Proteas in the tri-series final against New Zealand on Saturday afternoon.
In little more than two weeks Hendricks will be turning 36 – so it’s not hard to imagine that he could be announcing his international retirement after Saturday’s outing.
While Hendricks is clearly not the long-term future for the Proteas, what is noteworthy is that he’s currently the highest ranked South African batsmen in the ICC T20I rankings.
The rankings list, which is topped by Australian Travis Head, sees Hendricks ranked 12th. The next best South African is Aiden Markram at 28. What that means is that Hendricks is currently South Africa’s best T20I batsman.
- Markram averages 30.37 in T20Is and 31.08 in T20s
- Rickelton averages 20.23 in T20Is and 29.86 in T20s
- Hendricks averages 29.68 in T20Is and 34.15 in T20s
Hendricks not the future, but don’t forget the past
Is there still shred of hope of an international future for Hendricks to cling to? Or is the writing on the wall that he needs to call it a day with the Proteas and go and earn some big money on the franchise circuit.
Hendricks has been a loyal servant of South African cricket but somehow, he has managed to live his career in the shadows.
With 2,345 T20I runs to his credit he is (and this well probably come as a surprise to most people) the Proteas third highest run-scorer in the format, ahead of superstars like AB de Villiers, Klaasen and Faf du Plessis. The only two batters ahead of him on the list are David Miller and Quinton de Kock.
Who knows what conversations have gone on between Conrad and Hendricks? Whatever has or hasn’t been said, Reeza has been a fantastic servant to South African cricket. He deserves to go out on his own terms.
With series against England and India coming up before the end of the year, and a one-off T20I against Namibia, perhaps there’s still a chance for Hendricks to bow out in style.
He is not the future, but his contribution needs to be recognised, he should not be allowed to disappear quietly into the night.