Tsolekile has it all to do

Cricket South Africa named their list of 22 centrally contracted players for the 2012/2013 season, and it would fair to assume that the biggest eyebrow-raise was reserved for Thami Tsolekile, for all intents and purposes, being named Mark Boucher’s Test successor after he was awarded a contract.

The vexing question of who replaces Boucher in the Proteas set-up has been the elephant in the room since 2009, when it became apparent that his days were numbered. While it is with released breath that the selectors have finally decided to take the ‘Great Leap Forward’, like Mao’s experiment in China, their choice does leave some questions hanging in the air, steroids for doubt among cricket fans.

Tsolekile has been on the domestic scene for over a decade, and was the one man who has kept wicket for South Africa other than Boucher during the 2000s, when Boucher was dropped in 2004 for three Tests against India and England. It was the same England series in which AB de Villiers and Hashim Amla (to varying degrees of success) made their debuts. His keeping was tidy and efficient, but it was with the bat that it became apparent that he still had some way to go to becoming the finished product. Five innings yielded 47 runs at an average of 9.4, not flattering at all when wicket keepers are expected to chip in consistently in cricket’s modern age.

Since then, his first-class batting average has steadily improved, hovering around 30 after 130 games and 183 innings. Tsolekile, good enough to play international hockey when he was younger, moved to the Lions in 2009 after his career stagnated in the Cape, and has reaped the rewards, receiving consistent game time and being a reliable man behind the stumps.

Still, his batting is going to be examined critically versus his competitors for the coveted keeping position. Heino Kuhn and Dane Vilas each average more than 15 runs an innings more than Tsolekile. Purists may say that batting isn’t everything, but to ignore it would be trite. Andrew Hudson, the chief selector where the buck stops on these matters, asserted that Tsolekile has averaged over 50 in his last couple of domestic seasons. That may be true, but that average is bolstered by a high number of not outs, and not big hundreds, suggesting the man’s fighting quality if not his ability to do Gilchrist-ian big scores.

Tsolekile also turns 32 this year, versus Vilas’ 27 and Kuhn’s 28 (I haven’t mentioned Daryn Smit, who is already 28). If he shows the required skill to play international cricket for a sustained period, it would be for five seasons at best, versus the longer periods his contenders can offer. Have Vilas, Kuhn and Smit gotten a raw deal? Possibly. Is there a reason behind the selectors’ gambit? Definitely.

Being the more experienced wicket keeper means Tsolekile, behind the stumps, is arguably better suited to the rigours of international cricket, knowing his craft that much longer. Like good goal keepers, it’s an extremely difficult position to master and maintain at the highest levels, evidenced by Boucher seeking some assistance at the beginning of the season to keep his technique up to scratch. South Africa doesn’t want to enter the Kamran Akmal Twilight Zone where they have a wicket keeper who adds runs on the board, but also does so for the opposition through poor glove work.

It is now up to Tsolekile, a veteran on the domestic circuit, to prove to his detractors that he has what it takes. If he doesn’t, then South Africa has taken one step forward and two steps back. The pressure is on.