Cape Town - Cricket South Africa (CSA) on Thursday announced the 12-man squad that will attend a spin bowlers camp to be held in India from 30 April to 7 May 2017.
Eight promising spin bowlers and four specialist batsmen will travel to Mumbai to receive expert training on how to maximise their bowling skills and better face some of the world’s best spin attacks.
The list includes Proteas Dane Piedt and Theunis de Bruyn, while Aiden Markram, Aviwe Mgijima, Jason Smith and Shaun von Berg are also included after they excelled for their respective franchises this season.
There are also the unfamiliar names of Tsepo Ndwandwa of the Fort Hare Academy and Khaudise Molefe of Jeppe Boys High on the list after they shone for their teams during the recently concluded 2016/17 term. The pair’s attendance is sponsored by the Global Cricket School and offers a valuable opportunity for them to be exposed to high level cricket in foreign conditions.
The group will be accompanied by coaches Shukri Conrad (South Africa 'A' head coach), Lawrence Mahatlane (South Africa under-19s head coach) and Robin Peterson (spin bowling consultant).
CSA high performance manager, Vincent Barnes, believes that this camp is a good opportunity for players to up their skills during the off-season period. This will also give them something to work on during the winter months, looking ahead to the new season.
“This camp has been an annual undertaking for the last six or seven years and has been of great benefit for many players over that period of time,” he said. “We’ve seen players such as Stiaan van Zyl, Dane Piedt, Eddie Leie, Temba Bavuma, David Miller and Mangaliso Mosehle attend the camp and return with really good feedback. Several players (like Piedt) requested to return to the camp in order to brush up on what they have learned and we have seen a remarkable improvement in many of their performances.
“At first, the camp was purely for spin bowlers, but we thought it was a good idea to include batsmen who would like to sharpen their skills against spinners. It’s worked brilliantly for our guys and every year the bar is set that much higher. We have another exciting group of players travelling this year and we’re looking forward to seeing the progress they make.”
Spinners
Kyle Simmonds (Cape Cobras), Dane Piedt (Cape Cobras), Tshepo Ntuli (Knights), George Linde (Cape Cobras), Akhona Kula (Knights), Shaun von Berg (Titans), Tsepo Ndwandwa (Fort Hare Academy), Khaudise Molefe (Jeppe Boys High).
Batsmen
Theunis de Bruyn (Knights), Aiden Markram (Titans), Aviwe Mgijima (Cape Cobras), Jason Smith (Cape Cobras).
Coaches
Shukri Conrad (South Africa 'A' head coach), Lawrence Mahatlane (South Africa U19s head coach), Robin Peterson (sspin bowling consultant).