‘It’s worked out for us’: Head coach Conrad lauds Proteas seam bowlers

2026-03-03 - 04:23

As well as their batters have done in getting them to the play-offs, head coach Shukri Conrad has been full of praise for the squad’s bowlers, who have also shone throughout the T20 World Cup. Making a risky decision ahead of the tournament being played in the sub-continent, the Proteas coaches and selectors opted to back their pace bowlers, and the decision paid off with the national side remaining unbeaten ahead of their semifinal against New Zealand in Kolkata on Wednesday. The only specialist spinner in the first-choice XI, experienced slow bowler Keshav Maharaj, had not been as effective as they might have hoped, taking five wickets in five games at an economy rate of 8.11. But their seamers had delivered spectacularly. While pace bowler Kagiso Rabada had not made much of an impact, taking four wickets in six matches, Lungi Ngidi, Corbin Bosch and Marco Jansen grabbed 34 scalps between them in the first two rounds of competition. “We don’t have the wrist spin, we don’t have the mystery spin, but what’s going to be important in India is if you can nail a yorker. Some change-ups, maybe on wickets that might be a little bit iffy, and some good pace can do the trick,” Conrad said. “And it’s kind of worked out for us, so we’ve thrown our weight behind what we know we’ve got, which are really good pace bowlers, and we’ve obviously added some subtleties to the armoury.” Ngidi adds variety Ngidi in particular had been impressive, using the slower ball to add some real variety to the Proteas attack and standing out as the side’s top bowler heading into the knockout stages. Conrad said Ngidi’s contribution had been invaluable on unpredictable wickets throughout the tournament, and he expected the other seamers in the SA squad to also continue playing key roles in the play-offs. “We might not have left the shores of South Africa with a mystery spinner, but I think we’ve got a mystery seamer in Lungi Ngidi who almost fills that role for us in the middle and in the powerplay as well,” Conrad said. “We’re constantly looking to make an impact with the ball, whether that be taking wickets or managing a run rate.”