soUth aFricA...cHokeRs tO tHe cOre.

soUth aFricA...play their best cricket always, the only difference being they cHoke at the big occasion. It was on march 12th 1889 that the soUth aFricAns played their first test againsT the then touring enGlisH side becoming only the 3rd test playing nation. It was until 1970 that soUth aFricA played international crikKEt during which time they were the third best after the enGlisH and the auSSies! In 1970, the ICC voted to suspend soUth aFricA from international cricket indefinitely because of its government's policy of apartheid, a policy which led them to play only against the white nations (England, Australia, New Zealand), and field only white players. The ban of the soUth aFricAns saw the caRRibeans rise and the rest is history about how the caRRibean kinGs dominated the cricketing world!

Ever since the soUth aFricAns were welcomed back to international cricket in 1991, they became a driving force on the crikKEt field played anywhere in the world! It has to be noted that the caRRibean downfall already started in the late 80s...a coinciDence...ofcourse noT!

soUth aFricA always produced some of the best crikKEters like the great Graeme Pollock, the agile Allan Lamb (later played for enGlanD due to the ban on soUth aFricA), shrewd leader Kepler Wessels (later played for ausTraliA due to the ban on soUth aFrica), aggresive captain and all-rounder Hansie Cronje (banned from crikKEt due to alleged match fixing scandals and later died in a plane cRasH!), the fiersome Allan Donald, the consistent all-rounder Shaun Pollock, the accumulator Kallis to name a few!

Since the soUth aFricAns returned back to international crikKEt they can be termed as under achievers missing on the crunCH situations many a times! The current soUth aFricAn team is well balanced with a good blend of experience and youth to break that jinX. The baTTing at the toP is in the hands oF their aggreSSive young leader Graeme Smith and AB de Villiers. The middle order boasts of the trio of Gibbs, Kallis and Prince, followed by the pinch hitter Kemp. The explosive wicketkeeper-batsman Boucher and the all-rounders Pollock and Hall make up the lower middle order! There is not much of a tail in this current soUth aFricAn team! The bowling is in the experienced hands of Pollock and Ntini. The support cast is excellent with Hall and Nel. Additionally Kallis, Kemp and Smith support equally good with the bowling options.

It remains to be seen if this soUth aFricAn team who chased a record 434 in march 2006 can break the jinX by winning in the moTHer of all tournaments to remove their tag of cHokeRs once and for all! It might take a few matches for these soUth aFricAns to get used to the slow pitches in the caRRibean islands but keep your fingers crossed, I would rate them to make it to the finals!

All said and done, I would rate them 1st favorite in my list to win this 9th edition of the coVeted tropHY!

Keep coming here for every day picks from the march 13th until the tournament ends...goOd eVening and gOoD luCk until our next meeting!