South Africa is all set to play their 1000th international match today. They will be the eighth nation to join 1000 plus clubs and undoubtedly, it will be an emotional affair for the Proteas. European colonization of Africa brought cricket to South Africa (in particular Cape Town). The earliest known reference of Cricket is dated back to the 1800s and there used to be an annual fixture “Mother Country v Colonial Born”. Cricket was slowly becoming popular among English-speaking Africans and native people and it led to the establishment of structured cricket. Now whether you call it a coincidence or anything else, the Proteas played their first test too on this particular day against England at Port Elizabeth.
The history of cricket in South Africa is really interesting. Domestic tournament Currie Cup which began at the end of 1889 became popular and was at the zenith during the 70s and 80s. One of the factors which is attributed to its popularity was the isolation of South Africa from the international arena for a long time. Dr. Ali Bacher was one of the prominent figures to end 21 years of isolation and forced Rainbow nation’s way back into the international circuit.
Over the years South Africa has played 999 matches winning 517 with a W/L ratio of 1.507 which is next only to Aussies(1.762). In all these matches, 321 players have played for the country and this gives us an opportunity to pick all-time XI in Tests as well as the ODI section. We pick up an All-Time Test Team in this article.
Batsmen: Graeme Smith (Captain), Barry Richards, Hashim Amla and Graeme Pollock
| Player | Span | Mat | Inns | NO | Runs | HS | Ave | 100 | 50 |
| GC Smith | 2002-2014 | 116 | 203 | 13 | 9253 | 277 | 48.7 | 27 | 38 |
| B Richards | 1970-1970 | 4 | 7 | 0 | 508 | 140 | 72.57 | 2 | 2 |
| HM Amla | 2004-2015 | 82 | 141 | 13 | 6757 | 311* | 52.78 | 23 | 28 |
| RG Pollock | 1963-1970 | 23 | 41 | 4 | 2256 | 274 | 60.97 | 7 | 11 |
All-rounders: Jacques Kallis and Aubrey Faulkner.
| Player | Span | Mat | Runs | HS | Bat Av | 100 | Wkts | BBI | Bowl Av | 5 | Ct |
| J Kallis | 1995-2013 | 165 | 13206 | 224 | 55.25 | 45 | 291 | Jun-54 | 32.63 | 5 | 196 |
| G Faulkner | 1906-1924 | 25 | 1754 | 204 | 40.79 | 4 | 82 | Jul-84 | 26.58 | 4 | 20 |
Bowlers: Shaun Pollock, Hugh Tayfield, Dale Steyn and Allan Donald.
| Player | Span | Mat | Inns | Balls | Runs | Wkts | BBI | BBM | Ave | Econ | SR | 5 | 10 |
| SM Pollock | 1995-2008 | 108 | 202 | 24353 | 9733 | 421 | Jul-87 | 10/147 | 23.11 | 2.39 | 57.8 | 16 | 1 |
| HJ Tayfield | 1949-1960 | 37 | 61 | 13568 | 4405 | 170 | 9/113 | 13/165 | 25.91 | 1.94 | 79.8 | 14 | 2 |
| DW Steyn | 2004-2015 | 78 | 147 | 16486 | 8932 | 396 | Jul-51 | Nov-60 | 22.55 | 3.25 | 41.6 | 25 | 5 |
| AA Donald | 1992-2002 | 72 | 129 | 15519 | 7344 | 330 | Aug-71 | 12/139 | 22.25 | 2.83 | 47 | 20 | 3 |
Wicket-Keeper: Mark Boucher
So, here is the all time eleven (according to batting order):
Graeme Smith (Captain)
Barry Richards
Hashim Amla
Graeme Pollock
JH Kallis
Mark Boucher (Wicket-Keeper)
Aubrey Faulkner
Shaun Pollock
Hugh Tayfield
Dale Steyn
Allan Donald
(Do you think there should be someone else on this team? Let us know your views in the comments)