Seven balls at Newlands and a reminder of what Jason Smith can do

Did Jason Smith answer questions about his place in South Africa's T20 World Cup squad with his blast of 22 off 7 balls, helping Mumbai Indians Cape Town beat Joburg Super Kings at Newlands?

"I don't think he answered them in one innings; in seven balls," said Eric Simons, Joburg's assistant coach. "He played really well. He hit some crucial boundaries at crucial times and that took the momentum away from us. But there's a lot more to T20 cricket than a few hits. He hits the ball hard, he hits the ball a long way, and he's done that a few times this tournament already. But there's some way to go still."

When Smith arrived at the crease with 19 balls left in the rain-reduced match, Cape Town needed 39 runs. He launched his first ball, a full toss from Wian Mulder, over midwicket for six. After two singles, he then smashed Richard Gleeson for two more sixes in the penultimate over—one over midwicket and another straighter over long-on. He was dismissed next ball, caught at long-on, but left his side needing a manageable 12 off 8 balls, which Karim Janat and Corbin Bosch achieved with four balls to spare.

Alongside Nicholas Pooran's 33 off 15, Smith's fiery cameo secured the defending champions' first win of this SA20 season. Remove his explosive innings, and that win likely wouldn't have happened.

Notably, despite being a central figure, Smith did not appear at the post-match press conference; Nicholas Pooran attended instead.

"He hits the ball like a West Indian, but there's a lot for him to learn as well," Pooran said of Smith. "The most important thing for him is to learn as fast as possible. He's just been selected for the T20 World Cup. He's heading to India, where conditions will be favourable for him. He has everything that can make him do well there. We're really happy to see him smashing it for us. So our job is to give him that freedom to express himself without any pressure."

Smith's innings served as a timely counter to criticism following his surprise inclusion in South Africa's T20 World Cup squad, announced last Friday. His selection sparked debate, with some suggesting racial quota considerations played a role, given his limited statistical resume.

A key data point supporting his selection was a blistering 68 not out off 19 balls for KwaZulu-Natal Coastal in a T20 last November, where he helped chase 104 in 7 overs. He followed that with a 58 off 41 balls two games later. Since scoring 117* in a first-class match in March last year, he has passed fifty only eight times in 28 innings across formats without converting to a century.

However, a purely statistical view may miss his impact. His innings often follow a pattern: the game slipping away, Smith enters, and accelerates dramatically. In October 2024, he scored 65* off 44 to chase 156 against Free State. Tuesday's knock was the latest example. The evidence suggests Smith possesses a rare ability to fast-forward an innings in high-pressure moments; the manner and speed of his scoring can outweigh a modest run tally.

As Eric Simons noted, discussing the role of Joburg's Donovan Ferreira: "You need to get him to the crease at the right time rather than the wrong time. That's what this game of T20 is all about. Some people get to the wicket in the 15th over and that's when they're effective. They get there in the 10th and they're not. So it's not just about hitting the ball for big boundaries. It's also about doing it at the right time, in the right way."

Smith could benefit from staying close to Pooran for the remainder of the SA20 to absorb his mindset. Pooran, who hit five sixes in his innings, including three in one over from Gleeson—one landing on the roof of the members' stand—downplayed the idea of simply trying to hit every ball hard.

"If it looks like I'm trying to hit the ball as hard as possible, that means I'm not batting well," Pooran said. "Yes, I love to hit sixes. That's my job. But it's not only about hitting sixes. It's also about batsmanship, adapting to different conditions, and playing the situation the right way."

He also playfully staked his claim as the biggest hitter in the Cape Town lineup: "Jason can hit a long ball for sure. [Ryan] Rickelton can hit it. But they can't hit as many sixes as I can."

The numbers bear him out: in T20 cricket, Pooran hits a six off 10.17% of the balls he faces, compared to Rickelton's 6.90% and Smith's 4.81%.

Of the three, only Smith is going to the T20 World Cup. If he can significantly close that six-hitting gap, he will have had an excellent tournament.