Domestic issues: Cricket SA needs to produce Proteas, but there are challenges

The outcome may have been one-sided, but all the ingredients for a sizzling opening to the new domestic cricket season were on offer at the Wanderers on Friday night.

Local rivalry? Check. Top young talent? Check. Proteas places up for grabs? Check ... and check again.

Yet, despite what for a domestic clash was a good crowd of 3,000 going through the gates at the Wanderers to watch the Titans put up a huge 258/6 in their 117-run win against the Lions, something felt amiss.

Maybe it was the poor marketing from Cricket South Africa (CSA) for the match, which consisted of little more than press releases about ‘Catch-a-million’, and the hosting of the competing teams’ captains at a go-kart event on the East Rand.

Marketing budgets are tight, but when there is talent like Dewald Brevis, Lhuan-Dre Pretorius and Kwena Maphaka to work with, then CSA really should do better.

Domestic cricket has been a tough ‘sell’ in the last decade, with CSA’s own administrative chaos not helping matters, and a more general overload on the sporting calendar all having an effect.

In that regard it's ironic that a major problem for the development of elite players is actually a lack of playing time. It’s the topic which dominated the build-up to the domestic season.

Lions head coach Russell Domingo, who previously filled that role with the Proteas, described the schedule as “bullshit”. Sibonelo Makhanya, heading into his 10th season, said he “would pay to play more”.

“Seven games per format at this level is not enough for any cricketer to improve,” Makhanya added. 

For the eight Division One teams, there are only seven matches available per competition. There are play-offs in the two white ball tournaments, and the final which takes place for the Four-Day Series, but at between 21 and 28 matches for the summer, there is little time available for players to make mistakes and learn from the team or even get a run of form going and sustaining it, before the season would be over. 

Titans coach Mandla Mashimbyi, whose job was on the line last summer as his side failed to secure a trophy for the first time in 12 seasons, was more empathetic.

“Everyone would like to play more,” he said. “For the development of the game, it would be great. But there are things that stop us from doing that.” 

The main thing is money. Again, it’s ironic that CSA announced a profit for the last financial year of R815m. That figure needs to sustain South African cricket for the next four years, which includes a World Cup for which money needs to be set aside, so that stadiums can be improved ahead of hosting that event.

Normally CSA would be able to rely on the government for a stipend to assist it, but given how tight belts need to be squeezed, with hospitals and schools in greater need, cricket and a World Cup may have to take a back seat. 

It costs money for stadiums to host matches too. Cricket SA makes R24,700 available to each venue for every Division One match, but for the majority of provincial unions, that amount is far too little. Anywhere from R100,000 to just over R500,000 at some of the bigger venues is needed to cover costs such as security, ground preparation or just turning on the lights for night matches.

How do we make sure we still develop players that are of sufficient quality given the amount that they play? It will take a lot of years for a youngster to play a lot of games. We need to figure out how to balance the development part of the game with the finances.

—  Titans coach Mandla Mashimbyi

It means besides the Lions, Titans and KZN Dolphins, who all are able to cover costs because they have a number of sponsors, the remaining five unions make a loss every time they host a match.    

Amid those challenges, Mashimbyi said it was up to everyone to try to strike a balance.   

“How do we make sure we still develop players that are of sufficient quality given the amount that they play? It will take a lot of years for a youngster to play a lot of games. We need to figure out how to balance the development part of the game with the finances.” 

What there is no disputing is the kind of talent coming up through junior level, especially from the big private schools.

The Titans’s opener Pretorius put on a show at the Wanderers, scoring 82 off 43 balls, while Maphaka, in a Lions bowling unit which struggled with the basics, took 2/31. 

They are both 18 years old.    

“There is always room for improvement, but if you look especially at the youngsters who are coming through, talent-wise it is unbelievable,” said Mashimbyi. 

Domingo has said the standard of domestic cricket matches is much of what is seen around the world. The trouble, as has been shown by the struggles the Proteas have had in bilateral series lately, is that players taking the step up to the international level aren’t as polished as previous generations, primarily due to a lack of game time.

As a result ‘bridging levels’ need to be created, whether that be through the South Africa A team or SA20, where players are exposed to a slightly higher standard of play against international opposition.