JOHANNESBURG - Kagiso Rabada will in all likelihood miss some of South Africa’s matches this summer, as part of ‘load management’ in what is shaping up to be a busy season for the Proteas’ premier fast bowler.
Rabada has had a month long break from cricket, following South Africa’s tour to the Caribbean and then Ireland, but will resume preparation along with the rest of the squad at a two-day training camp in Potchefstroom that starts Sunday. The side then heads to Sri Lanka, for a tour comprising three One-Day and three T20 Internationals, following which Rabada, along with a handful of his teammates will head to Dubai for the Indian Premier League. They will remain in the region for the T20 World Cup, which follows.
Cricket South Africa will announce the schedule for the 2021/22 season next month, with a tour by India set to be the highlight of the summer.
How much of that series and other matches Rabada will play, is to be determined over the course of the season.
“It’s inevitable that there will be a conversation about (load management), because there is so much cricket. At the moment I’ll just go with the flow, ” Rabada said on Friday.
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“The medical and coaching staff...it is their job to manage the players and make sure they don’t burn out. I’m pretty sure there are plans in place. My job is to do my best with the ball, the bat and in the field and help wherever I can, especially the guys who are not so experienced; and try to get the team to gel together.”
Rabada will almost certainly play in all the Tests given how the Proteas are keen to build on the success achieved against the West Indies. The 50-over format also carries greater importance nowadays with the World Cup Super League a qualifying event for the 2023 World Cup. Currently the Proteas are 10th on the log in that competition, leaving them outside of an automatic qualifying spot for the 50-over showpiece and in danger of going into a qualifying tournament.
After the T20 World Cup in the Middle East in October/November, that format takes on less importance, so it is likely Rabada will feature in fewer T20 matches for the Proteas. In Ireland recently he played just three of the six matches, indicating that ‘load management’ was taking place.
“We gained a lot of confidence in the West Indies,” Rabada said of South Africa’s recent tour there where the team won the Test and impressively, the T20 series’s. “We are an extremely young side, still inexperienced actually. The team is gaining more experience by playing together more. We feel much more comfortable around each other,” he added.
The Proteas are scheduled to depart for Sri Lanka on Tuesday.
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