Durban Super Giants early elimination puts Klusener’s tactics under the microscope

Ongama Gcwabe

WHEN Durban’s Super Giants (DSG) became the first team to crash out in the round-robin stage of the ongoing third edition of the SA20 League earlier this week, coach Lance Klusener's decision-making over the last few weeks came into question.

Now, there is no doubting Klusener's credentials as a coach. He boasts a successful two-year tenure as head coach of the Afghanistan senior men's team.

Between 2019 and 2021 the 53-year-old spearheaded the Afghans in six ODI and nine T20I victories in 14 matches with some coming in the 2021 T20 World Cup.

That displayed just how good a coach Klusener is.

Moreover, Klusener had an impressive SA20 campaign with the Super Giants last year, taking the Durban-based team to their first-ever final despite going on to lose to the Sunrisers Eastern Cape in the final at Newlands.

As tough as a campaign can get but we’ve still got the best dressing room in the world 🥹💙 pic.twitter.com/hEiaF0WX0x

— Durban's Super Giants (@DurbansSG) January 28, 2025

However, this year the 53-year-old has made a number of questionable decisions this year, particularly with the inconsistency of his batting order.

Heinrich Klaasen, the world's most destructive middle-order batter, found himself shifting up and down the order, batting anywhere between positions five, six and seven whereas his specialist position is well known to be number five.

Quinton de Kock also found himself in a similar conundrum as Klusener put him at number four in the batting order in the first half of the season only to shift him up to the opening position late in the tournament, a decision that tainted the Super Giants' campaign.

These are just a few examples of the inconsistency that Klusener displayed throughout the Super Giants' poor campaign this season; a campaign in which they tasted victory only once while they were handed six defeats on their way to an early exit.

Expectedly, because there was very little consistency in selection, the Super Giants simply struggled to find a settled unit, with the Paarl Royals handing them a tournament-ending six-wicket defeat at Boland Park on Monday night.

It still remains to be seen whether or not Klusener will keep his job for the fourth season of the SA20 but it is likely that the former Proteas all-rounder will coach the Super Giants for the last time when they play the Joburg Super Kings at the Wanderers Stadium on Saturday night.