- July 6, 2025
Consider a Test match situation, and you turn up at the ground without your captain, without your first-choice spinner, and with two debutants in the XI. Yet you are still odds-on to win. That is essentially the game awaiting South Africa ahead of their second Test against Zimbabwe in Bulawayo. While Wiaan Mulder may well have been a peripheral figure in the past, he now sits in the captaincy seat, and at three in the batting order. Yet still, most people would bet on South Africa overpowering their neighbors. Why? Because they have found a way of winning that has much to do with self-belief and not star players.
Wiaan Mulder: From Fringe to Frontline
Just over a year ago, Wiaan Mulder wasn’t even a certainty in the playing XI. Fast forward, and he’s now captaining the Test side, promoted to the first drop, as well as expected to bowl key spells. That’s not just a promotion, that’s a metamorphosis. Mulder’s progress represents a great deal about the kind of culture Shukri Conrad has developed, one that recognizes belief and backs players to take on extra responsibility. Let’s be clear, they have stepped up.
Missing seven frontline stars hasn’t dulled South Africa’s edge—their Test squad remains impressively sharp. Mulder isn’t the finished article as such, but he is adaptable, resolute, and unflappable. His captaincy may well trigger another level in his game, and combined with a win at Lord’s, the dressing room is overflowing with confidence.
Corbin Bosch: The Breakout Star We Didn’t See Coming
Now and then, a cricketer comes out of nowhere and makes you notice him. That’s precisely what Corbin Bosch produced in the series opener. An unbeaten century and a five-wicket haul? In only his second Test? That’s crazy. And it comes with a bonus – the emotion of following in the footsteps of his father, Tertius, a fiery fast bowler from the early ’90s.
Bosch Jr. has genuine pace, and he was cool-headed with the bat, making him an invaluable member of this makeshift squad. It is not every day a team discovers a match-winner while also managing a slew of injured players. If he backs this up in Bulawayo, South Africa may have found themselves an all-format star.
Zimbabwe’s Challenge: Familiar Ground, Familiar Problems
Zimbabwe has the advantage of playing at home and introducing some new players, but their problems are nothing new. Injuries haven’t helped—a concussion has ruled Brian Bennett out of the game, and the batting is still shaky under pressure. While Prince Masvaure will, probably, keep his opening spot, the rest of the team’s lineup leaves one questioning how this team can trade blows with South Africa.
Blessing Muzarabani is still their best bowler, but he too was unable to make inroads on a flat pitch in the first Test. If the pitch is even drier this time around, Zimbabwe’s bowlers are going to have to work hard for their rewards, and that is a lot to ask against such a confident opponent as South Africa.
Missing personnel didn’t faze South Africa, thanks to a deep bench and a strong sense of belief. Whether it’s Mulder embracing the leader role or Bosch carving out his legacy, the Proteas are winning games that are neither about the opposition nor records, but decidedly not dressing-room confidence either. Zimbabwe is just trying to ‘survive’ and find small wins, but South African cricket is now about making a statement that they can win anywhere, with anyone.
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