Afghanistan's Rashid Khan is one of the danger men the Proteas will face in the Champions Cup opener in Pakistan on Friday.
Image: Asif Hassan / AFP
The last time the Proteas faced Rashid Khan in a One-Day International series they were all at sea against the legendary Afghanistan leg-spinner.
In that ODI series in September 2024 in the United Arab Emirates, Rashid took seven wickets across two games at an average of 7.00, including a five-wicket haul (5/19) in the second match, helping to dismiss the Proteas for 134.
Afghanistan won that series 2-1 after Rashid had bamboozled South Africans with his leg breaks in the first two matches. The Proteas ended the series with a consolation win when Rashid missed the final ODI because of injury.
So, it's no surprise that Rashid is viewed as one of danger men ahead of the Proteas meeting with Afghanistan in their Champions Trophy opener in Karachi on Friday.
To be fair to the Proteas, those pitches in Sharjah were very slow, low and spin friendly. Also, a number of the Proteas white-ball stars were on a bit of a break following the heartbreak suffered during the ICC T20 World Cup in the West Indies and the United States.
But during that series it was Rashid's spells that created the carnage, with the Proteas unable to read him out of the hand because of his bowling action, where he bowls with a much faster arm action than your average wrist-spinner.
His ability to bowl quick, deceptive leg-breaks and googlies at a low trajectory disrupts batsmen’s timing, especially in the middle overs where he thrives. In ODIs, he has 198 wickets in 111 matches at an average of 19.13 and an economy rate of 4.23, which underlines his consistency and wicket-taking prowess.
The Proteas have struggled against quality spin in recent ODIs, evident in their series defeat against Afghanistan and the 3-0 whitewash by Pakistan in December, where spinners like Saim Ayub and Sufiyan Muqeem ran through them.
However, The Proteas have a few things counting in their favour going into Friday’s Champions Trophy match against Afghanistan in Karachi.
The surface is going to be as flat as a pancake, which will negate some of the threat Rashid poses. It was almost impossible to play off the wicket in the UAE, but that is not going to be the case on Friday.
The margin for error will also be smaller for Rashid and other spinner, as we have witnessed in the warm-up matches and the opening match between Pakistan and New Zealand. If a ball is slightly short, good players of spin such as Heinrich Klaasen and Tristan Stubbs will put you in the stands.
The South African players have also seen a lot more of Rashid over the last few years after featuring for MI Cape Town in the SA20 League, leading the team to the title a few weeks ago.
However, it’s still going to be an intriguing battle between the SA batsmen and the Rashid. You feel the winner of that battle can help their team win the war.
@JohnGoliath82