The curious case of Senuran Muthusamy and the ‘horses for courses’ approach of the Proteas
Senuran Muthusamy’s (centre) exceptional performances, including a crucial 89 not out and Player of the Series award in the Pakistan Test series, highlight his value as a batting allrounder, yet his place in the Proteas Test team remains uncertain due to South Africa’s fast bowling dominance and competition from other allrounders. Picture: Aamir Qureshi/AFP
Image: Aamir Qureshi/AFP
If there’s one player that has performed exceptionally but is still uncertain about his place in the Proteas Test team, it’s spinning allrounder Senuran Muthusamy.
Though there were a number of strong Proteas performances in the Pakistan Test series, it was Muthusamy who probably contributed the most.
In fact, his 89 not out in South Africa’s first innings in the second Test almost single-handedly changed the course of the match and the series.
As South Africa went on to win the second Test and draw the series 1-1, Muthusamy was given the Player of the Series award for his 106 runs and 11 wickets.
Muthusamy’s Role in South Africa’s Victory Over India: A Batting Hero Despite Limited Bowling Opportunities
His reward from the Proteas? He was left out of the Proteas’ first Test against India at Eden Gardens earlier this month. However, this wasn’t even a harsh decision as the pitch appeared to be one that was more in favour of the seamers.
Testament to that was the fact that India fast bowlers Jasprit Bumrah (5/27) and Mohammed Siraj (2/47) took seven wickets between them in the first innings as the Proteas were bundled out for 159.
Also, add in that Muthusamy is seen as a bowling allrounder, but there’s no way he’d feature ahead of Keshav Maharaj and Simon Harmer right now.
At the moment, Muthusamy’s biggest contributions actually seem to be coming with the bat. Coming in at number seven in SA’s first innings in the second Test in Guwahati, the 31-year-old brought up his first hundred in the format in just his eighth match.
As South Africa beat India by 408 runs to win the series 2-0, Muthusamy remained the top scorer in the match. With the ball, he bowled just two overs in the first innings and another seven in the second.
Challenges for Muthusamy in South Africa’s Fast Bowling Dominance
As a bowling allrounder that’s better suited to the spinning conditions in Asia, it’s difficult to see how he can regularly feature in a side which is built around its fast bowlers. For example, Kagiso Rabada didn’t even feature in the India series as he picked up an injury.
Then of course, you have Corbin Bosch and Marco Jansen, who are fast bowling allrounders, so it’s difficult to see Muthusamy commanding a spot ahead of them in the majority of conditions the Proteas may face, and especially back in South Africa.
Though Muthusamy made his Test debut way back in 2019 but he’s not yet reached 10 Tests, it’s unfortunate that he will probably not play many matches for the Proteas in whites, and it’s simply because South Africa have an embarrassment of riches both in the allrounder and bowling departments.
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