Duminy's place in the Test team under scrutiny after under par performances

South African middle-order batsman JP Duminy’s form has been a cause for concern in the South African camp after their campaign got off to a torrid start with a 211 run loss at the home of cricket, along with the suspension of their premier fast bowler Kagiso Rabada for the second test which has become even more significant.

Faf Du Plessis, upon returning from an extended paternity leave due to the “difficult birth” of his child, has admitted the possibility that South Africa may look to make changes in the team, with dropping Duminy one of the potential actions.

“JP will be the first guy to say he knows he needs to score runs for this team and it’s no different for anyone else,” du Plessis said. “He is desperate to do well as anyone in that position. You want to try and score runs every time you go out that. He knows at the end of the day that it’s about runs.”

The 33-year-old left-hander has been far from his best, making meager scores of 2 and 15 in the first Test and having not crossed the 40 run mark for 8 innings. His Test average of 32.15 after having played close to 50 Tests doesn’t make for good reading either.

Faf du Plessis added, “He understands that if it has to come to a position where there is someone else that needs to be looked at… he will be the first to acknowledge [that]. He is a crucial part of our senior player group and he will always put the team interests above himself so yes, he will be the first to acknowledge that.”

The skipper spoke highly of Theunis de Bruyn, who scored 48 in the first innings of the Lords test, and hinted that he may have moved up the queue, possibly ahead of Duminy for the rest of this series. “You can look at someone like Theunis de Bruyn who has played pretty well this game – standing up at Lord’s and it’s only his second Test match. He was solid in that first innings. He played well,” du Plessis said.

Duminy’s additional bowling prowess may be a lifeline; however, it seems that South Africa have to choose the correct balance of their team, and Duminy may have to be omitted either way. They could go for 4 pronged pace attack, with du Plessis admitting that is an option, by playing Morris and reserve pacer Duanne Olivier, or they could just keep things simple with du Plessis replacing him. Either way, Duminy’s stay in the test team is likely to get cut short as the next Test approaches.