Rubin Hermann walked off Buffalo Park pleased, yet not quite content. His 45 on T20I debut underpinned South Africa’s three-wicket win over Zimbabwe, a chase of 142 that might have become tricky once both openers fell cheaply. Still, the wicketkeeper-batter felt he had left the job half-done.
“I was a bit more irritated that I left 12 runs on the table before I could actually shake hands with the guys and say I’ll pull the stumps out and end this game,” he admitted. “That was effectively my role – just to be there at the end. So I was disappointed I couldn’t do that but maybe I am just nit-picking.”
Those 12 runs would also have pushed him to a maiden half-century, though the 27-year-old insisted the number mattered less than the finish. “It’s disappointing to fall five runs short of a milestone but that’s just an added bonus,” he said. “It’s not a focus of mine to maybe have personal achievements in that regard.”
The comment mirrors the outlook South Africa have tried to cultivate under head coach Shukri Conrad. Less than a week ago, stand-in Test skipper Wiaan Mulder declared on 626 for 5 while 34 runs shy of Brian Lara’s record 400*. “Left to the legends,” Mulder explained later, even after Lara phoned to say he should have kept going. The message is clear enough: results first, numbers later.
Hermann has heard it often during the past season and says it helps simplify everything. “It’s a holistic picture coming from the Proteas all the way down to domestic cricketers, which made the step up a lot better, because I knew what I did to get me here was what they’re looking for,” he said. “It’s not a situation where you have to go and impress anyone, you just have to be yourself because they’ve selected you for you and because you fit the brand they want to play.”
That brand, in Hermann’s case, is an attacking but adaptable top-order player who can also rebuild if early wickets tumble. He did precisely that for Paarl Royals in SA20, finishing fifth on the tournament run charts. At times he had to steady things once Lhuan-dre Pretorius mis-fired or after Joe Root departed mid-campaign. The repetition of that role made Saturday feel oddly familiar.
South Africa were wobbling at 17 for 2 when Hermann walked in, the ball still new and Zimbabwe’s seamers lively enough. His method was simple – get in first, catch up later. “I was quite fortunately, or unfortunately possibly, in that role quite a lot in SA20, so I’m quite comfortable playing that role. I really do enjoy the pressure situations where we have to take control of the game again, and I was glad I could do it again today,” he said. “I know if I just give myself a chance, I’ll catch up with my strike rates in any game.”
He certainly did. After crawling to 17 from 20 deliveries, Hermann unfurled three boundaries in four balls off Richard Ngarava – a pick-up over mid-wicket, a diced drive through cover, and a late cut finer than a tailor’s chalk line. By the time Blessing Muzarabani pinned him lbw, the equation had shrunk to 28 from 29. Marco Jansen and Gerald Coetzee nudged the rest.
The innings was not flawless – he backed away too early on occasions and miscued the odd pull – but it underlined a temperament South Africa have been hunting. Temba Bavuma’s long-term fitness remains uncertain, and Quinton de Kock has retired from ODIs and Tests. A gloveman who can hold the top three together is, frankly, handy.
For now Hermann will settle for being in the XI again on Wednesday, even if he is already plotting ways to make sure he is the one shaking hands, not watching from the dug-out. “I want to be a guy to win games for South Africa, and I should have been there at the end.”
Balanced, candid and, by his own admission, still improving – it is a neat way to start an international career, even if Hermann insists there are 12 runs missing.
