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There is a certain look of disbelief that passes over a Captonian's face
if they are told something in their city could improve. Who can blame
them? The jewel of Africa seems perfectly polished in every way with a
sea as azure as the skies above it and plenty to suit all tastes.
The same incredulity was felt by those in the presence of Graeme Smith when he mentioned after the Newlands Test he believes Vernon Philander
could get better. Philander was not named Man of the Match despite his
nine wickets because Robin Peterson's 84 was the real difference between
the two sides but it would have been a tough decision given Philander's
feat.
He claimed his ninth five-wicket haul in just his 15th Test. It was also
his fourth at Newlands and took his total tally of Test wickets to 87.
His wickets per Test sit at 5.8 (his new-ball partner Dale Steyn's are
at 5.1) and his average remains a staggering 16.81, statistically making
him the most dangerous bowler on the international circuit. Of all
current cricketers, Philander has the lowest average by some distance.
Steyn is next with an average of 22.68.
If Philander gets any better, batsmen will stand even less of a chance
than they do against South Africa now and Smith warned that is possible
he will. "Vernon will be the first to admit that he is still a work in
progress," Smith said. "He would like to see his pace up. His skill
factor is at a very high level and his seam action is unmatched. He is
like the seam version of Saeed Ajmal. But if he can pick up a little bit
of pace, his old ball spells will get better. His new ball spells are
already so effective and if he can get the old ones to the same level…"
When Philander broke onto the scene in 2007 the main concern was that he
as too much of a trundler to cut it. He rarely goes beyond 135 kph
although he is a major threat despite that. Philander's danger is in the
subtlety. Like Ajmal, batsmen are unsure what the ball is going to do
when it comes out of the hand.
Philander's secret is not prodigious swing as he only moves the ball a
few centimetres but because he can do it both ways, it creates
uncertainty. Most of his wickets result from edges because batsmen are
not sure whether to go forward or back to him and they are often found
out on the drive.
With the new ball, his seam movement is more pronounced as expected and
there were some concerns during this series that South Africa lacked the
ability to attack with the old ball. Philander proved that wrong with
his second-innings burst that was aided by poor shot selection from the
Pakistan middle order. Philander showed he can still make the ball talk
later in the match.
"We knew an old ball spell could win us the Test match", Smith said.
"When we are able to control the run-rate and then frustrate them, we
thought if we could make the old ball work for us, we'd be able to get
close to dismissing them and having a chaseable target."
Creating something even where conditions don't suit is what has always
been seen as Philander's challenge. So far, he has been able to succeed
at home, in England, New Zealand and Australia but the subcontinent
remains his biggest test. South Africa's next Test series will be played
in such conditions in the United Arab Emirates against Pakistan and
it's there that Philander could claim his 100th scalp, unless he manages
13 wickets at Centurion starting Friday.
It also means that Philander will probably not become the fastest to 100 Test wickets because George Lohmann
holds the record, having achieved it in 16 matches. SuperSport Park
will be Philander's 16th. He is, however, in line to become the fastest
South African to the mark.
Had injuries not kept him out of three matches he could have played in,
Philander may have had his 100 haul already. Those niggles are another
source of concern. Three Tests after making his first appearance,
Philander picked up a knee problem that ruled him out of the 2011 Boxing
Day Test against Sri Lanka. Marchant de Lange replaced him and became
the year's most successful debutant with 7 for 81 but has since had
stress fractures that kept him out of action for most of the season.
In November 2012 in Australia, Philander woke up with back spasms on the
morning of the Adelaide Test and Rory Kleinveldt replaced him at the
11th hour. It allowed Kleinveldt, who opens the bowling with Philander
for their franchise, the Cobras, to redeem himself from a poor first
outing in Brisbane and to show his own skills. Kleinveldt also stood in
for Philander in Port Elizabeth against New Zealand in January when a
hamstring injury ruled Philander out.
Although Philander has recovered from the hamstring problem, it has been
described by the team manager Mohammed Moosajee, who is also a medical
doctor, as chronic. Philander will not be managed in the same Jacques
Kallis is - where his quota of overs in monitored - but his
participation domestically is looked at as one way of keeping a handle
on the problem. Given Philander's value to the national team, it is not a
problem anyone will complain about too much.
Firdose Moonda is ESPNcricinfo's South Africa correspondent
Feeds: Firdose Moonda
© ESPN EMEA Ltd.
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