South African imbalance in spotlight with dramatic batting improvement needed | Daniel Gallan

The tourists’ ineptitude with the bat is in stark contrast to the potency of their bowling although the MCG pitch could help reduce the disparity

Everywhere you look there is decay. Things that once worked no longer do as they should. Rare success stories are inflated beyond their merit. Failures are greeted with accepting shrugs. Short term fixes are in short supply. Twist a narrative enough times and any international sports team will neatly embody the country it represents. That is not necessary when analysing the Proteas and their struggles with the bat. If anything, the comparisons with South Africa are a little too on the nose.

For the daily electrical blackouts see routine batting collapses. For the failed promises of the ruling African National Congress there is the unfulfilled potential of Aiden Markram. Squint your eyes at the crumbling public transport system and you might see Temba Bavuma’s single Test hundred from 89 innings. For the empty space on the team’s shirt where a sponsor should be, well, fill in the blank as you see fit.