Johannesburg - Albie Morkel can count himself unlucky to have missed out on selection for the Proteas World T20 squad which was announced on Wednesday.
David Wiese and Chris Morris were selected as the bowling allrounders in the squad, while Morkel could be considered more of a batting allrounder.
Morkel, 34, will in all likelihood not get another chance to represent the Proteas despite a strong performance in the domestic T20 competition which ended in December.
Morkel was sixth in the batting averages during the competition, and the second highest allrounder on that list with only Wayne Parnell ahead of the Titans stalwart.
Batting low down the order, Morkel managed 198 runs at a strike-rate of 141. Morkel was also included in the current One Day International (ODI) series against England but was later withdrawn because of a back injury. Morkel now says he is fully-fit and simply was not selected.
But the thinking of Proteas management was that Wiese and Morris would offer more with the ball, with both speedsters considerably faster than Morkel. While Morkel's batting can be match-winning on his day, the Proteas management are placing more faith in the top six batsmen to score the runs.
In the same breath, Parnell would also have fancied his chances of receiving a call-up. But Parnell who has been in superb form with the bat, would miss out for the same reason as Morkel as management would prefer Morris and Wiese as better bowlers.
The one difference with Parnell is that he would offer greater variety with his left-arm seamers, but that still did not crack him the nod. With Imran Tahir and Aaron Phangiso selected as the spin options, South Africa should be well covered in that department. And JP Duminy could also provide backup in that department if needed, despite a string of recent poor performances with the ball. The one major gamble South Africa are taking is with Dale Steyn.
The Proteas spearhead has been sidelined since the Boxing Day Test against England in Durban, and will have just three matches to prove his fitness when South Africa welcome Australia for a T20 series next month. Morne Morkel who has led the Proteas attack in Steyn's absence in both the Test and current ODI series also misses out.
But with Kyle Abbott and Kagiso Rabada also in the squad, Morkel was simply unlucky to be left out. South Africa made the last four in the previous World T20 in Bangladesh, and are in Group 1 with England, Sri Lanka, West Indies and Qualifier B.
South Africa's first match will be against familiar foes England on March 18 at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. If any of Sri Lanka, West Indies and England beat South Africa it would be a stretch to call it an upset which indicates the difficulty lying ahead for the Proteas.
And unless the Proteas produce something extraordinary, it seems likely their title-drought in ICC Championships dating back to 1998 seems set to continue. - African News Agency (ANA)