It was the 14th August 2023 and the cricketing world in general and the Proteas’ faithful in particular burst out in excitement to finally see a 20-year old Dewald Brevis get a senior national call up.
Yes, Rob Walter the South African limited overs coach and selection honcho gave this run machine the recognition he deserved by bestowing him with the green and gold.
This after, Brevis was the leading run scorer in the U19 ODI World Cup 2022 and having already plied his trade in reputed T20 tournaments the likes of IPL, SA20 and CPL.
Truth be told, I was also very keen to see this kid from Pretoria climb the ranks in the senior setup with the batting prowess he commands.
Perhaps it was truly a blessing to see not only him being selected for the upcoming Australia series but also other exuberant youngsters, the likes of hard hitting Tristan Stubbs, the karate kid Gerald Coetzee, the batting machine Mathew Breetzke and the towering all-rounder Donovan Fereira make the cut.
South Africa have showed faith in trusting the unprecedented potential of youth not only against the mighty OZ but also for the 50 over show piece that follows in India with the insatiable hope of reaping the rewards.
The rich experience in the likes of Bavuma, de Kock, Miller, Markram, Nortje, Rabada and the returning Keshav Maharaj perfectly blended with the ebullience of youth could only spell as a recipe for a World Cup winning dish to finally be prepared after more than two decades of heart crushing misery.
With the T20I’s against Australia commencing on 30th August in the beautiful port city of Durban followed by the ODIs in Bloemfontein and the Highveld, the pitch will be the canvas for these mighty young fighters and their cricketing ability the mode of expression.
Surely they will have to repay the belief shown in them by the South African Management to not only triumph against the Kangaroos but also bring the prestigious ODI World Cup trophy to the southern shores of Africa.
On paper the cavalry has been mapped, now it’s time for them to conquer with action.
When this happens, then and only then will the 60 million Mzansi supporters truly in unison say ‘Yes we are stronger together!’
