Olivier will be patient

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Newly capped Protea fast bowler Duanne Olivier is thrilled to have represented his country in the third Test against Sri Lanka but understands that he may have to wait for his next opportunity.

Despite the loss of Kyle Abbott to a Kolpak deal Olivier recognizes that the Proteas won’t always be able to field four seamers and with Dale Steyn set to return at some point he may not play another Test for a while.

Olivier said after the victory at the Wanderers: “I know there are players coming back. If I get the opportunity to play again, of course I want to play.

“Who doesn’t want to play for the country? But I do also understand they have been performing well for the last 10 years so I can’t be like I must play. I am not too fazed.

“If I don’t play it’s not the end of the world for me. I will keep working hard at franchise level until I get another opportunity. I will get my opportunity and I will wait for it, whenever it comes.”

Olivier would be asked to do something he had never done during the Third Test against Sri Lanka, when during his first day as a Test cricketer he was asked to be nightwatchman.

The young quick grabbed the opportunity but admitted to being nervous: “They (Faf du Plessis and Russell Domingo) asked if I wanted to do it. And I decided why not. It’s an opportunity. It was scary because I don’t even bat as high for the franchise but it was exciting.

“I was nervous going out there, batting with a guy like Hashim but it was an unbelievable experience for me.”

When asked about his first ball in Test cricket, Olivier conceded that he was battling nerves yet again: “My hands were sweating and I didn’t think straight.”

Olivier dropped a catch off his own bowling that would have given him his first Test wicket and recalled the incident: “I was disappointed but it was only my own fault.

“But I knew there was a lot in the wicket so if I just bowled according to plans and did what Faf told me to do, I would get rewarded.”

Olivier enjoyed the experience of playing red ball cricket in front of a crowd, with attendance usually sparse at domestic first class matches.

He added: “When I play four-day cricket, there is no one watching but here, it feels like there are 20 million watching.

“It’s intense, it’s crazy, you need to concentrate, you need to be on the ball, you can’t wander off and watch at the screen. The level is so much different to domestic cricket, you can’t compare.

“At the end, their No. 8, 9 and 10 batsmen can bat. That’s not to say our franchise players can’t but you feel like you have a chance with franchise players.”

 

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