As Vernon Philander himself said at Lord’s in 2012: “The stats don’t lie.” And the stats say that, in the limited-overs formats, he is not half the bowler he is in Test cricket.
But Philander’s growing maturity and the use of a new ball from each end in one-day international matches could change his 50-over fortunes, according to his Cobras team-mate Charl Langeveldt.
Mfuneko Ngam, meanwhile, cannot understand why the Ravensmead Wrecker is not seen in a one-day shirt for South Africa more often.
After only 16 Tests, Philander has taken 89 wickets. He has an average of 17.13 and he removes a batsman every 36.8 deliveries; the best strike rate now among Test bowlers and the second-best in history.
But Philander has played only half as many one-day matches as he has Tests. He has an economy rate of 4.78 and a strike rate of 44.4, and he has taken seven wickets at 35.42.
The disparity is reflected in the International Cricket Council rankings. Among Test bowlers, Philander is No 2. In one-dayers he is No 222. Philander is playing for the Jamaica Tallawahs in the Caribbean Premier League. Of the 50 bowlers in the tournament, he is 24th on the list of averages, 21st in terms of strike rate, and 12th among wicket-takers.
Stats or no stats, South Africa’s recent one-day form — in particular their 1-4 thrashing in Sri Lanka in July — has led to calls for Philander to transfer the high quality of his Test bowling to the shorter formats.
Why, if Test cricket is the most difficult form of the game, and considering Philander’s roaring success in that format, is that not already the case? “Because he bowls a fuller length, guys can come down the track to him in one-day cricket,” Langeveldt said. “In Test cricket, people don’t often come down and hit you over your head.”
But Langeveldt also made the point that “the more you play, the more you learn”. Philander, he said, had “learnt to mix up his pace” and to make good use of the option of bowling two bouncers per over. “That’s different from when he and I played together. He would bring the wicket-keeper up, which took his bouncer out of the equation.”
In one-dayers played since October 30 2012, separate new balls have been used from each end, a fact that Langeveldt thought was tailor-made for a bowler who had Philander’s finely tuned skills. “Batting teams tend to start slower and try to catch up at the end of the innings,” Langeveldt said. “So he could strike up front — there is a role for him.”
For Ngam, no debate was necessary: “I would pick him. He swings the ball and he bowls well, even on flat pitches.”