He might be known for his exploits in the 50 and 20-over formats of the game, but South Africa’s Jean-Paul Duminy is of the opinion that Test cricket is here to stay.
However the left-hander feels that 50-over cricket is at risk thanks to the growing popularity of Twenty20.
Duminy, who will be playing in India for the first time as part of the Cape Cobras in the Champions League T20, admitted that he has already started feeling the heat with the entire team relying on Herschelle Gibbs and him to deliver, especially in Graeme Smith’s absence.
“The pressure is always there whenever you are playing but with Graeme not around and it being my first visit to India, let’s see how things turn out,” said Duminy.
However, a respite for him will be the fact that the players he will be playing against are not new faces. Duminy was the most successful batsman for the Mumbai Indians in the second edition of IPL this year, scoring 375 runs including five half centuries. Plus, with the ball he played a vital role as he turned out to be the second most economical bowler for the team, conceding just 5.3 runs per over.
“Though this tournament will be a new experience altogether, the one season I spent with the Mumbai Indians team will really help me in faring well this time around,”
he said.
He, however, differs from many cricketing experts who opine that IPL teams will have an advantage in the tournament. “We play as a team throughout the year unlike the IPL teams who play only once. That’s where we score over them. Moreover, this is a short format of the game and anything can happen,” Duminy said.
The Cape Cobras, will begin their campaign against Royal Challengers Bangalore in the tournament opener on October 8 and he believes that they can definitely cause an upset.
