Proteas batter Jason Smith has shown glimpses of his power-packed game, but was he used properly at MI Cape Town in the SA20?
Smith is among the 15-players selected in South Africa’s squad for the upcoming 2026 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup in India next month, a squad that was selected by convenor of selectors Patrick Moroney and coach Shukri Conrad.
The 31-year-old was a surprise addition to the squad, as he did not seem to be in the plans, having not been included in last month’s five-match T20I series in India. However, the power-packed batter has shown glimpses of what convinced both Conrad and Moroney that he could add value in the T20 World Cup.
The brute strength that he showed during his 14-ball 41 in the SA20 opener at Newlands on Boxing Day certainly stood out. However, the right-hander has since scored only three double-digit scores as MI Cape Town suffered an early exit from the tournament to finish at the bottom of the table for the third time in three seasons.
The question is, was Smith used properly at MI Cape Town?
During his 41, he batted at No 4, one position below what he is used to when playing for the Dolphins. This season, the right-hander has batted at No 6 and No 7, and seemed not have a defined role in the batting unit.
A close look at his returns for the Dolphins in the CSA T20 Challenge, he seemed more productive batting at No 3, where he smashed two half-centuries.
MI Cape Town coach Robin Peterson revealed the extent of the situation he dealt with at MI Cape Town this season. Peterson had to make the decision to put his faith in last season’s players who won him the SA20 trophy, or entrust the untested newbies, including Smith who joined MI Cape Town this season.
As a result, the coach put his trust in last season’s players, a feat that saw Smith slip down the order with even George Linde batting ahead of him in the batting order on numerous occasions.
“I think the temptation is always to go with the same players that you want to reward them and show some faith in them for the way they performed a year ago,” Peterson said. “But that’s always something you could look at.”
Make no mistake, Peterson has done some remarkable things in his young coaching career, having won the Major League Cricket with MI New York, the SA20 with MI Cape Town and recently the CSA T20 Challenge with the Warriors.
However, perhaps he did not get it right this time around, especially with finding the right spot in the batting order for Smith. Peterson acknowledges that he, too, continues to learn his craft as a coach.
“A lot of learning, I think. You never know it all as a coach. If you know it all, you probably shouldn’t be coaching,” he said.
“A lot of learning, a lot of reflections. It’s not only about the players becoming better, but it’s also about whether I can improve too. I took a lot of learnings out of this competition, certainly.”
With MI Cape Town out of the SA20 and Smith being in the Proteas T20 World Cup squad, he certainly will feature in the upcoming three-match series against the West Indies here in South Africa.
The 31-year-old will hope that Conrad has clear plans for him, as he could find himself playing a massive role in the T20 World Cup.
