An impending scan on a groin injury for Vernon Philander will concern South Africa ahead of their international commitments in England this summer.
Philander’s injury, which meant that he did not take the field in Kent’s second innings and instead will travel to London for assessment, took the gloss off a record 10th wicket stand against Kent between Ben Brown and Sussex’s first-day hero Jofra Archer.
This development will frustrate Cricket South Africa who have been keen to manage their quicks ahead of a tour of England that includes three T20Is, three ODIs, three Tests and the Champions Trophy. Kent were victims of CSA’s worry when they had a deal for Duanne Olivier pulled from under their noses. The feeling from Sussex is that, from this point on, CSA will determine what’s next for Philander. Without Brown and Archer’s 99-run partnership it could have been a grim day indeed. They came together at the fall of Philander’s wicket – 192 on the board, Kent’s first innings of 304 staring back at them. And while there were moments of good fortune, Brown and Archer buckled and swashed their way through the afternoon, pushing tea back by half-an-hour, to get Sussex within 13, with two innings to play. Brown, in particular, was thoroughly impressive.
A wicketkeeper’s career, now more so than ever, is a peculiar one. For the longest time, Brown’s cricket was determined by the availability of England and Sussex legend Matt Prior. Most of the time, he was Prior’s understudy. But, as Prior began to battle injuries up until retirement, Brown’s presence would allow Prior to play as a batsman only. That dynamic has changed this year. Now, Prior is the man working to give Brown a better sense of clarity. The pair worked together in pre-season, one-on-one sessions tailored to fine-tuning Brown’s keeping. Speaking to the Sussex’s website, Prior said that the wicketkeeper is “the last thought about man in any team, in any set-up”. It is worth noting that England do not regularly travel with a specific wicket-keeping coach. While Prior had Bruce French to call upon, Prior’s improvement as a wicketkeeper was largely down to his own drive and ambition. Brown’s character is similar.
