Is Graeme Smith’s appointment as Director of Cricket a sensible decision?

It was shortly after the disastrous 2003 ICC Cricket World Cup on home soil that a 22-year-old giant stepped up to assume the captaincy of the Proteas. The man hardly rated as a long term prospect as Proteas top order batsman now had the unenviable task of leading a team at its lowest since the Klusener-Donald disaster in the 1999 World Cup.

Add to this the fact that he was in effect stepping up for the much-adored Hansie Cronje — Shaun Pollock was merely plugging a hole in a time of need. Despite walking away from the game in a cloud of shame, the late Cronje still had plenty of admirers and this scrawny kid from KES was no Cronje in their eyes.

Seventeen years on from that time, Graeme Smith is widely regarded as one of the greatest Test captains in the history of the game. He is equally celebrated as one of the great opening batsmen in any era.

In the midst of this pandemic Cricket South Africa announced their appointment of the 39-year-old as the Director of Cricket for the next two years.

Spoilt and aloof

Like in 2003, there has been a fair share of scrutiny at the decision by the organisation that runs South African cricket and it may be just, the relationship between the former Proteas skipper and cricket stakeholders in this country has been frosty at times. Who could ever forget his infamous detour on the way back from another World Cup disappointment in 2011, when he opted to go to the United Kingdom instead of returning to South Africa with the rest of the team? It left a bad taste in the mouth of even his most ardent fans.

He has in many always been seen as one of South African cricket’s spoilt brats, handed the Proteas captaincy in the infancy of his career at 22 and now given the directorship of cricket in this country before his 40th birthday.

Graeme Smith does not have the same warmth of character as say, Faf du Plessis, who was the opposite of this in his tenure as Proteas Test captain and he has been used as a yardstick of how Smith should have been as Test captain. As Director of Cricket, he will oversee the cricket programmes at different levels and a warmer approach will probably be required. Du Plessis, a much warmer and eloquently spoken leader, still couldn’t drag the Proteas out of their current abyss.

Possessing the right approach to help South African cricket

Smith is not the easiest personality, but his level of success as a player and a captain would suggest working with him is not exactly mission impossible. On the contrary, his workmanlike approach during his playing days may be the perfect remedy for South African cricket at all levels.

South African cricket has never been in the shallow end as far as talent is concerned, but an over reliance on natural talent alone is something that seems to be hurting cricket in this country.

Graeme Smith was unorthodox as a cricketer and limited in the strokes he could play, but you seldom saw a batsman or cricketer for that during his era that showed more tenacity and application than he did. He knew his game better than most batsmen did and that gave him an edge over individuals far more talented than he was, with his kind of fortitude, he could instil the right mentality in South African cricket.

More than this, he will likely know who to turn to and put in strategic positions to enhance the structures that churn out talent for the Proteas.

Potential chemistry

Apart from sharing an alma mater with the new Proteas ODI and T20 captain Quinton de Kock – he wore many caps with equal efficiency as a player and this is something that seems to come naturally for de Kock as well.

It may be a chemistry that aids the Proteas in their quest to get their ship steady. Smith’s role is obviously not as hands-on with the senior national team, but a common view from director of cricket and the Proteas captain may help.

Graeme Smith finds himself in a position he has been exposed to before, at the forefront of the mission of reinventing and reinvigorating the Proteas. Only this time he doesn’t have access to the change and his role is not only limited to the senior Proteas, but cricket at all levels.

If there is one man who has a greater chance of doing it, then it is definitely the accomplished and unorthodox leftie. He has been a part of the resurgence before.

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