Du Preez approached the task by discussing the situation as transparently as possible with the players and was helped with the addition of extra resources. CSA appointed a full-time batting coach for the team, Baakier Abrahams, and sent their new spin lead, Paul Adams, in the touring party so du Preez could focus on bowling. “We’ve been working on the team culture and the most important thing for me is that the buy-in is there. When Enoch said we’re going to the World Cup and he wants me to still run the show, I got really nervous. And then he said he would send Paul Adams with and it’s been magical.
“The one promise we made to the team was because we don’t have a head coach, we will make it work. They understand me. They understand my limitations as well. So we just told them that, listen, we will make this work, don’t panic, don’t worry, just focus on the game.”
The team has done better than just that. Despite only winning one of seven series before the tournament – it happened to be one of the two du Preez was in charge for – South Africa reached the final in a second successive T20 World Cup. Their coup de grace was beating defending (and six-time) champions Australia in the semi-final by chasing 135 inside 17 overs.
In that match, they played a brand of brave cricket that they were unable to repeat in the final, as their batting faded away. But it is the way they aim to play going forward, according to du Preez. “We always knew it’s a bit more high-risk and it might be that in the beginning, we’ll pull off maybe two of five wins. But eventually, with the way we prep and the way we think – the blueprint – we’ll become more used to it.
“But I already think you can see the results. There’s no fear of failure. You’re either on the bus or you stay behind. That’s the way to play the game.”
After the final, du Preez was asked again whether he had any clarity on his future and he maintained that it was a conversation he would have with Nkwe on his return home. Given the schedule, it is likely he will stay on until the end of the year. South Africa host England in November-December for an all-format tour, which includes their first home Test in 22 years.
Du Preez’s hesitation comes from limited experience of high-level coaching. After a 14-year provincial cricket career, which included an IPL stint with RCB, du Preez coached at the University of the Free State. When posts for the academy and women’s team in Bloemfontein came up, he and fellow bowler Quinton Friend put their hands up and agreed that Friend would go to the academy and du Preez would “move into the women’s space”. He describes it as an “opportunity that came up at the right time”.
While Friend went on to spend several years as Imraan Khan’s assistant and has since taken over the Dolphins head job, du Preez’s path has been slightly different, which might explain his reluctance to continue at a high level immediately. He is, however, developing a coaching style of his own, based on a combination of experience and knowledge. “I’m more on the technical side of things. I think what’s helping me at the moment is the fact that I have been playing cricket, obviously not at a massively high level, so there are some things in matches which the team goes through which I understand.”
