South Africa's tinkering ahead of the World Cup has become more intricate and one of the tussles has emerged in the middle order where David Miller and Rilee Rossouw may face off for a spot in the final XI. Both are aggressive, industrious and athletic but with a strong top six, there will likely only be room for one and captain AB de Villiers said South Africa will have a "tough decision to make" in choosing between them.
"It's a bit of a difficult one for us at the moment," de Villiers said after South Africa's victory in the series opener against New Zealand in Mount Maunganui. "They are both left-hand batters, both really good fielders so we've got a tough decision to make."
Miller did not feature in that game because he was recovering from a viral infection and management did not feel he was ready."We felt David was a little under prepared. He had one net session and then he was under the weather for most of the time here."
However, de Villiers made it clear that once Miller is declared fully fit, he will come back into contention. "He is an amazing player and we love him in this side."
De Villiers' confidence in Miller comes despite him having last scored an ODI fifty in December last year. Since then, Miller has played 11 matches, batted in eight and managed a score over 35 only twice, although he has been not out four times. While South Africa's batting strength has denied Miller the opportunity to spent long periods of time at the crease, there may be a concern that when he gets the chance to do that, he has not taken it.
In those eight innings, Miller was in after 40 overs three times of which two were after 46 overs, and on another occasion arrived with just 22 runs needed for victory, so his low scores were understandable. But in the other four matches, Miller had at least 20 overs and was dismissed for scores of 3, 0, 45 and 4, which may pave the way for Rossouw to stake a claim for the middle-order spot.
The Knights batsman has played only four ODIs and has gone from opening on debut to batting at No. 4. Although he has scored only 62 runs, he has already impressed de Villiers with his approach. "I rate him highly, he is a very skillful batter and can take the game away from teams," de Villiers said. "Even though he didn't score a 100 or a 50, the presence he brings to the crease and the confidence he gives to the other batters is very good. I sit on the side and I get confidence from the way he moved around the wicket and that's a sign of a really good batter."
Rossouw has the domestic pedigree to back up de Villiers' impression of him. Last season, he averaged 40.22 in the domestic one-day tournament and over the winter, he was the top-scorer in a quadrangular series involving Australia A, India A and an Australian Performance outfit. Rossouw made 337 runs in seven matches at an average of 48.14, which ultimately led to his selection for South Africa's ODIs in Zimbabwe.
Including him will allow both de Villiers and JP Duminy to bat lower, which may give South Africa the middle-order bulk they have been searching for. Despite calls for de Villiers to face as many overs as possible, the captain prefers being there at the end to finish games and Duminy has become an able partner in that cause.
South Africa seem likely to go into the World Cup with six specialist batsmen, two allrounders, two frontline fast bowlers and a spinner, but getting that combination correct, particularly in the top half, is still a conundrum. They may discover Rossouw could be a candidate for solving it.
(Cricinfo)
