Duanne out of the Dog House

Of all the intriguing personal duels and individual performances to look forward to during the course of the South Africa / India Test series, the re-appearance of fast bowler Duanne Olivier in a Proteas shirt and cap may be the most fascinating.

Talking of caps, he was so certain that he would never have use of his ever again that he had it mounted and framed behind glass. Covid protocols prevented him reclaiming it in time to join the national squad upon his recall, but it sounds like he never expected to make the starting XI anyway. Until Anrich Nortje was ruled out of the series with injury. Now he has sheepishly asked for another “if I am selected.”

Time is the great healer of bruised emotions but let’s not pretend that Olivier’s decision to sign a Kolpak deal with Yorkshire three years ago didn’t hurt the feelings of many of his teammates. The start to his Test career had been sensational with 48 wickets at 19.25 in just ten matches. Many of his teammates asked whether he could delay the decision by a year. The team was winning, going places, and he was a huge part of it. But his mind was made up and the contract was signed.

Many people make the mistake of confusing professional sport with patriotism or loyalty. Neither is a measure of the other. His decision to pursue an alternative career path also had nothing to do with transformation targets and consequently limited opportunities in the national team. In his case, it wasn’t about job security – it was about actual security. Having just made the decision with his wife to start a family, the Oliviers quite liked the idea of living in a country where you didn’t need to set the alarm and check the perimeter fence before going to sleep.

For many South Africans, however, Olivier’s greatest ‘sin’ was declaring a desire to qualify and play for England with sweat barely dry on Proteas cap. Except, he didn’t actually ‘declare’ it. I have known the journalist who asked him that question for many years. He’s very good. The question was asked in a way that would result in a strong ‘story’ however it was answered.

Olivier had arrived in the UK during a flurry of Kolpak signings as counties and players rushed to get deals done before Brexit closed the loophole which allowed South Africans to play as locals. There was rising resentment towards the new arrivals. They were said to be ‘cashing in’, mercenaries who didn’t care about English cricket.

If Olivier had replied ‘no’, he would have been confirmed as such. By replying ‘yes’ he was attempting to ingratiate himself with his new hosts and show that he was no free-loader. The resulting story was still back page news with the hottest product off the SA fast bowling production line ‘announcing’ that his loyalties now lay with England. There was no right answer.

“I'm very happy to be back in the squad and…I know people will have mixed feelings about it, but, at the end of the day, it's okay. You handle that and you deal with those pressures or the criticism that comes. But you know, when I came back, I felt very welcome with everyone,” Olivier said.

South Africa’s no-nonsense captain, Dean Elgar, knows all about the benefits of playing county cricket have done so with considerable success for Somerset and Surrey. Although he didn’t believe Olivier should have ended his international career in order to do so, he wasn’t holding any grudges this week:

“I'm excited to have him back, knowing what he can do on the field. There's no bad feelings about what's happened in the past. I want to win cricket matches and series for South Africa, and I'm sure I've got 100 percent backing in our change room,” Elgar said.

“He adds a different intensity and energy. You can see he's a different cricketer to what he was the first time he played for us, which is awesome. He played a lot of cricket in the UK, so he's bringing that knowledge and experience. That's something we need at the moment, he's a match winner. If he can win cricket matches for us, I'm all for having him back.”

There is no doubt about Olivier’s form this season with 28 wickets 28 wickets at 11.10 in four matches for the Lions. He says he’s always nervous before a match but that he expected his nerves to be “…through the roof” should he make the final XI. Which he surely will.

“I feel like I am a different player now," he said earlier this week. "Firstly, I'm more mature. From a cricketing point of view, I genuinely believe I'm different. The UK has helped me a lot; just perfecting that fuller length that every bowler wants to bowl. For me, it was quite difficult because it can come across floaty and I wasn't that consistent. I'm still working on it: I'm not going to get it right every time.”

Don’t be surprised if makes an impact at Centurion from Sunday. And don’t be surprised if his cap looks like it’s straight out of the box. “It will feel like I’m making my debut again.” In many ways, he will be.