Tour of West Indies 2004-05            Captain: Graeme Smith

38th official Test tour

Third Test-playing tour of West Indies by South Africa

   ((March - May 2005)

West Indies were unable to press home a strong advantage in the first Test at Bourda, and got beaten in the next match at Port of Spain by Makhaya Ntini’s magnificent bowling. The series had turned in South Africa’s favour and an overwhelming victory at Bridgetown was enough to secure the Sir Viv Richards’ Trophy.

Victory in the Test series was followed by a 5-0 clean sweep in the one-day matches. When Jeff Crowe, the ICC match referee, fined Graeme Smith and suspended him from the next four matches after he repeatedly fell below the required over rate, Shaun Pollock took over the captaincy.

Coach Ray Jennings had turned the team around after sliding down the Test and one-day ratings but had upset too many players on the way. He kept strict discipline but his attitude that some of the old hands needed ‘a kick up the backside’  did not go down well and his contract was not extended.

Other South African tours

Previous Tour

India 2004-05

Next tour

Australia 2005-06

Next tour of West Indies

2009-10

Members of the Test tour party (15)

Opening batsmen  Graeme Smith, AB de Villiers.

Middle-order batsmen  Jacques Kallis, Ashwell Prince, Jacques Rudolph, Herschelle Gibbs, Boeta Dippenaar.

Wicket-keeper   Mark Boucher.

Spin bowler  Nicky Boje.

Fast bowlers  Andrew Hall, Charl Langeveldt, Andre Nel, Makhaya Ntini, Shaun Pollock,  Monde Zondeki.

Representation of Supersport Series teams:   

D  (KZN) - Dolphins (1)

Eg  (FS, GW) - Eagles (2)

HL(G, NW) - Highveld Lions (2)

T(Es, No) - Titans (3)

W(EP, Br) - Warriors (3)

WP/B - Western Province/ Boland (4)

Average age of  team at time of first Test match

(31 March 2005) :

       27 yrs  4 months

Test Appearances made before the tour

Pollock 93,  Kallis 89,  Boucher 80,  Gibbs 66,  Ntini 55,  Smith 35,  Boje 31,  Dippenaar 31,  Rudolph 25,  Hall 14,  Nel 12,  Prince 9,  de Villiers 7,  Langeveldt 3,  Zondeki 2.

Team Officials

Selectors

Haroon Lorgat (convenor of selectors),  Omar Henry,  Ray Jennings (coach), Enver Mall,  Joubert Strydom.

Selection

Unavailable:  

Tour Party Announced :  13 March 2005

Andre Nel (left hamstring) Charl Langeveldt,(lower back), Jacques Kallis (right hip) and Shaun Pollock (left ankle) were all chosen subject to passing fitness tests on the eve of departure.

Not selected : Dale Steyn, Thami Tsolekile, Hashim Amla and Zander de Bruyn.

Time between selection and departure from South Africa

  11 days

    (13 March to 24 March)

Travel

The team departed from Johannesburg on 24 March 2005.  Shaun Pollock did not travel with the squad because of chronic inflammation of his left ankle.

The squad spent three days preparing in Antigua before moving to Guyana for the First Test.

Time spent in West Indies

   x days

(arrival - depart Host)

On-tour selection panel

Reinforcements

Shaun Pollock suffered from an inflamed ankle and missed the first three Test matches. Nicky Boje withdrew from the one-day squad after developing irregular breathing, and went home without being replaced.

Justin Kemp and Justin Ontong came in for the one-day matches in place of Rudolph and Zondeki. Dippenaar was not originally in the one-day squad.

Fixtures/Results

† not first-class

§  one-day international

Time spent in West Indies before First Test: 

x days

(arrival - 31 March)

Test appearances on tour

4  -   Boje,  Boucher,  de Villiers,  Gibbs,  Kallis,  Ntini,  Smith

3  -   Nel,  Prince,  Zondeki

2  -   Dippenaar,  Rudolph

1  -   Hall,  Langeveldt,  Pollock.

Highlights

•   Jacques Kallis’s innings of 109* saved the first Test after South Africa had followed on 355 behind.

•   Makhaya Ntini took 6-95 and 7-37, giving him 13-132, the best match figures by a South African in Tests

•   Graeme Smith’s slow148 at Port of Spain was the backbone of South Africa’s winning total there.

•   Smith (104) and de Villiers (178) opened South Africa’s innings at Bridgetown with a hundred each

•   Andre Nel took 10 wickets for 88 in the victory at Bridgetown, the best match figures of his career.

•   Four batsmen scored centuries (de Villiers, Smith, Kallis and Prince) in South Africa’s total of 588-6d at the Antigua Recreation Ground - but West Indies responded with 4 centuries of their own and a total of 747

•   Charl Langeveldt took a hat-trick to snatch a victory in the third one-dayer at Bridgetown.

Tour Summary

Return to South Africa

Rudolph and Zondeki went home after the Test series.

Nicky Boje returned home early for health reasons on c 6 May.

Last match ends 15 May 2005

Time away from South Africa    x days  

(24 March to arrive home in S AfI)

Finances