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Opinion: Amla questions will answer themselves

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Hashim Amla is a South African cricket legend and that will not change, but the tail-end of his career could take some of the gloss off his Proteas career.

Amla’s form has been the subject of a debate that has been raging since 2017 – and he has been left out of the Proteas ODI squad for the first three matches of the series against Sri Lanka.
At his best, there is no replacement for Amla, but he hasn’t managed to find the kind of form that earned him a reputation as a run machine. The World Cup appears as the natural point to call it quits, but there is now a question of his participation at all.
Amla will have a chance to prove that his powers have not completely abandoned him if he gets a run for the Cobras in the One-Day Cup, but that won’t answer the question of whether or not his technical problems can be overcome.
Much of Amla’s struggles have come against bowling that has targeted the area around and just outside off-stump. Josh Hazlewood kept Amla from contributing significantly to the Proteas’ Test series win in Australia in 2016 – and that seemed to trigger his current crisis.
The Proteas now face a tough choice between taking someone with Amla’s pedigree to the World Cup or picking a form batsman. It could be argued that younger players will make it harder to formulate plans against the Proteas’ top-order at the World Cup, while the plan to Amla is quite clear.
Amla did not score an ODI century in 2018 but has toned up already in 2019, smacking an unbeaten ton against Pakistan in January – a series in which he averaged over 50 in making the selectors job that much harder.
The former Proteas skipper has a great record in England as well and also hit a ton against Sri Lanka at The Oval during the 2017 ICC Champions Trophy. That could just see him retain his position.
Whatever decision the Proteas management make, they will need to take emotion and sentiment out of the choice. Amla deserves to go out on his own terms, but his inclusion in the World Cup squad should depend on whether he can help the Proteas end their trophy drought.
The batsman also needs to be driven to succeed, but given his stonewall demeanour, this is something only those inside the Proteas camp and the man himself can answer.
Competition for places in the Proteas squad is intense, with Test regulars Dean Elgar and Temba Bavuma making statements with centuries in their opening games of their domestic One-Day Cup campaigns. 
Reeza Hendricks appears to have the makings of a long-term replacement for Amla, but could be accommodated in the same squad as the veteran, while several other young players have put their hands up.
Time will tell if Amla goes to the World Cup, but both he and the Proteas need to be sure they do what is best for the team.

Written by Jonhenry Wilson for Hollywoodbets


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