1. Lizaad Williams - a Provincial player and reserve Franchise pick - ran through Zimbabwe's best batsmen twice!
2. Likewise Bokako - bowler and tailender deployed as a nightwatchman played Zimbabwe's best bowlers with aplomb. These two bowlers are 24.
3. Under 19 Galiem was dominant with the bat.
4. Not to be outdone, fellow u19 Ricardo was similarly destructive in the 2nd innings.
Quotas are what has allowed such quality to rise through the system. Scanning through the latest round of Domestic List A matches, throws up the same trend as the FC and T20 competitions. "Quotas" dominating every facet!
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While circumstance forced this on Zimbabwe in the 2002-2003 period, coupled with finance and structural challenges from 2004-2007, it's fair to measure the ten year period between 2008-2017 as being a fair amount of time.
However, while it may appear as if SA took a shorter - 5 years - 2013-2017, it's impossible to get results so quickly. The logical conclusion is that players were already there and good enough by then, just held back. All they needed was a system to ensure that they were selected across levels.
Now the results are the for everyone to see. "Quotas" are owning the South African domestic structure. Pressure is piling on the selectors to ensure that they are indeed picked as class must be reflected in the national team. The more they are picked and perform, the more decisions are forced on the selectors.
A Phehlukwayo outbowling Duanne Olivier makes it harder for the selectors to drop Phehlukwayo instead. Leaving a bowler of the class of Ngidi(and Siboto) out, makes it harder for the selectors not to be ruthless in dropping any of Morkel or Steyn should they fail to continue to live up to the standard.
Keshav Maharaj and Tahir have made the spinner roles their own, but Piedt, Shamsi, Phangiso and Leie are all next in line. So "quotas" have even created depth in terms of quality reserves too.
Ramela and Zondo continue to look on as several batsmen flop as reserves, but for now Markram stepped up to reverse increasingly disappointing returns of his peers. An injury or Amla retirement will no doubt present another opportunity for one of the bats to display just why their absence has been to SA's disadvantage.
In Zimbabwe no one can argue against the class of the likes of Chatara, Chisoro, Wellington, Jongwe, Vitori, Mutombodzi, Kasuza etc and now Shumba, Mashinge, Mavhuta etc as products. What has been lacking are systems ensuring that they are picked and played at the highest level. That's been the difference between SA and ZIM - resistance to shedding ageing underwhelming seniors.
While Bavuma has been handed and grabbed opportunities to face and thump the best bowlers around, the same hasn't happened for a Kasuza. It's also worth pointing out that the harsher treatment and environment Bavuma developed in, which saw him used and abused in every batting position helped him when similar tactics were forced on him in the national team. The likes of Chari have had it easier being named Franchise/Provincial captains ahead of time so perhaps not putting in the necessary grind.
Time will tell how both countries develop, but what's clear is that Zimbabwe are not applying their minds to the development of players. Mumba, Ngarava and now Blessing Muzarabani have taken turns being misused and given the worst kind of pitches - something that befell Vitori and Jarvis against Pakistan early in their careers(due to the foolishness of throwing in then two strike bowling seamers, plus adopting a flat pitch). One hopes that the conditions today will favour fast bowlers, but to as ask Blessing at that raw stage of his career, to be a great exponent of swing/seam bowling - something Streak himself only became a master of years older - is in itself foolish! More so considering that apart from height and bounce, he lacks the necessary pace to be relavant. Surely someone like a Shingi capable of some swing would have been more practical instead of two tall bowlers in the form of Mpofu and Blessing! Anyway, England themselves have done a similarly foolish thing a couple of Ashes back Down Under. Perhaps Streak is reading from that book. After all, he did spend quite a lot of time there.
