Rassie van der Dussen: The Proteas' reliable leader ready to shine
Rassie van der Dussen, at 36, is revitalised as captain for the T20 Tri-Series in Zimbabwe, showcasing his reliability and mentorship skills in limited-overs cricket. Picture: Asif Hassan/AFP
Image: Asif Hassan/AFP
At 36, Rassie van der Dussen is certainly much closer to the end of his Proteas career than the start, but being handed the captaincy role for the upcoming T20 Tri-Series in Zimbabwe has given the elder statesman something of a new lease on life.
Though Van der Dussen hasn’t officially retired from Test cricket, he’s on a white-ball contract with Cricket SA as he has chosen to focus on the more lucrative limited-overs formats.
Throughout his career, the top-order batsman has seldom stolen too many headlines while being a reliable run-scorer for whichever team he represents.
An example of his dependability came most recently in South Africa’s ICC Champions Trophy semi-final against New Zealand, in Lahore, in March. With the Kiwis posting a mammoth 362, the chase was always going to be a mountain to climb for the Proteas.
Van der Dussen’s The Bright Light in Proteas’ Struggles in Limited Overs Cricket
Although David Miller top-scored with 100 off 67 after the result was beyond the Proteas, Van der Dussen was the next best with 69 from 66 balls batting at three. Though he was well-supported by skipper Temba Bavuma (56 from 71), the middle order failed to keep up with the scoring rate.
It’s knocks like those that have seen Van der Dussen average an impressive 50 in One-Day Internationals as he’s scored 17 50s and six tons.
Of course, ultimate glory has eluded the Proteas in limited overs with the exception of the Champions Trophy in 1998, and Van der Dussen had been forced to deal with plenty of disappointment.
“It's so important to learn how to deal with disappointment in sport, generally, but more so I think in cricket,” said Van der Dussen.
“Because you can be the year of the wonder and get literally zero the next day. You know being chosen in teams and not being chosen in teams, it's so important to teach kids the skills to deal with failure and success and try and keep neutral.
“I ask myself am I doing enough, am I giving myself the best chance at success, am I fit enough? Am I training enough?”
Van der Dussen seems to already be filling a mentorship role, and it would be easy to see him in a coaching position once he hangs up his willow with his philosophical approach to the game.
“It's easy to say okay I didn't make a team because of this, or I didn't make a team because the coach doesn't like me or he likes the other guy more.
“I think it's being really honest with yourself and as a coach as well being honest with the player, but knowing that comes from a caring place and really trying to use that disappointment as a feel to burn, because you want to be successful in the end.
“It's easier said than done, we've all been in that position where it feels like, it almost feels like your life is ending in a sense, for us cricketers if you don't get chosen for a team, or whatever.”