South African bowling coach Charl Langeveldt sounded confident with the return of Kagiso Rabada, as the speedster is all set to return to action after the ICC ban in the upcoming limited-overs series against Australia starting on Friday (February 21) in Johannesburg.
The Proteas side will take on Aaron Finch and his boys in the 3 T20Is and as many as ODIs from February 21 to March 7 at home – which will be Rabada's first appearance since his one-match ban for excessive celebration at Joe Root during England Test series last month.
The 24-year-old was then rested for the limited-overs series against England at home and Langeveldt believes that long break would certainly have helped him to renew focus.
Hailing the pace sensation as a real wicket-taker, the bowling coach hopes that he will bring pace and energy at the back-end of an innings after month break while making it clear that the hosts would definitely make him use a few bumpers against the Kangaroos.
Langeveldt told reporters in Johannesburg, “Renewed focus is a good thing with a bit of a break. A 24-year-old, who's playing for his country, is always under pressure. Hopefully, he brings that pace as it's always difficult to deal with at the back-end of an innings... Hopefully, he'll bring the energy as well.”
However, the coach admitted that Rabada needs to find a way to control his aggression as he has often been suspended for his on-field reactions.
Langeveldt signed off by saying, “KG is competitive by nature; he is a wicket-taker... We'll definitely make him use a few bumpers but it's also about him controlling the aggression... I back him to find a balance, being aggressive with lines and lengths.”
(With Sport24 Inputs)
