Conrad positive of players choosing nation over T20 leagues as he promises to field the best SA side available to him.
Shukri Conrad positive that SA players will prioritise national duty over T20 leagues.4
Conrad, who on Friday was promoted from Test team coach to all-format coach, clarified that he had already begun the process of long-term planning with players under central contract in order to guarantee their availability.
“We’re going to put out the best Proteas side every time we play,” Conrad said at a press conference to announce his appointment on Friday. “I’ve had conversations with our players, all-format players and guys that only play the one format that are contracted to us, that at every turn when the Proteas play, there’s an expectation that they’ll play for South Africa.
“The Proteas will never be a franchise team, the Proteas will never be a league, nor will it be a convenience. This is part of building a culture and building an environment that players want to be part of. Every single player is committed to that and wanting to be a part of it so I can quite comfortably say that at every turn the best Proteas side will be put out on the field.”
The context of Conrad’s remarks is an increasingly full schedule, with South Africa playing virtually nonstop from mid-June until mid-December. Their schedule may include more preliminary games as well as era-defining ones, such the World Test Championship (WTC) final versus Australia at Lord’s or the two-Test tours of Pakistan and India later in the year.
“This comes with careful planning and buy-in from everyone and I think going down this road just cleans up everything,” he said. “It makes it less messy, [there will be] less conversation and less talk that can be quite polarising in many respects. It’s clear; black and white: when South Africa plays, I want all my players available to play. If you choose not to play for South Africa, well, then we go down that road. Our all-format players have been spoken to. They are fully supportive of what I’m wanting to do and then we plan the year for them in advance.”