RUDOLPH AMBITIOUS TO REPRESENT SOUTH AFRICA AGAIN

The famous South African batsman, Jacques Andries Rudolph, is anxious to represent his country again in International cricket. Jacques was born on 4^th May, 1981, in Springs, Transvaal, South Africa. A left handed batsman and an occasional leg break googly bowler, Rudolph is a good player to have in the South African squad.

Jacques first appeared for the Proteas against India in a One Day International (ODI) match on 13^th April, 2003, in Dhaka and made his Test debut against Bangladesh on 24^th April, 2003, in Chittagong. He appeared in the only T20 against Australia on 9^th January, 2006, in Brisbane.

He has played 35 Test matches, scored 2028 runs at a healthy average of 36.21 runs and his best innings is an unbeaten 222 runs. He has five centuries and eight fifties to his name in his Test career.

Rudolph has an impressive ODI record as well. He has taken part in 45 ODIs’, scored 1174 runs at an average of 35.57 runs and he scored 81 runs in his best innings. He has seven fifties to his name in his ODI career.

Rudolph has recently finished the first domestic season in South Africa on a high note after taking part in the County Cricket in England.

He achieved the distinction of the highest scorer in the Super Sport Series and held the second spot of scoring the highest runs for the Titans in the MTN40. He also led the franchise with his leadership qualities, being praised all over the cricket fraternity, and he seemed to be a changed person.

"Looking back over the last nine or 10 years, I've learnt a lot", Rudolph told ESPNcricinfo. "There were a lot of character building things that happened in my career and I'm in a good space at the moment".

He played his last ODI against Australia in February 2006 and last Test against Sri Lanka in August 2006 for the Proteas. Thereafter, his career diminished and he looked like giving up International cricket when he joined Yorkshire for four years and then opted out of the South African national cricket team.

He matured his game by inducting himself in County cricket which gave him a boost and capacious confidence, thus, encouraging him to join the National side again that currently seems to be depleted after being thrown out of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 in the quarterfinal against New Zealand on 25^th March, 2011. The team was labeled as “Chokers” once again in light of their disastrous World Cup campaign.

Rudolph reacted by commenting, “We do carry this tag of chokers", when assessing what went wrong at the ICC event. "Some people think it's fair, others think it's unfair. I think, to a degree, that it's unfair. But, in pressure situations, we just haven't been able to go through".

Rudolph anticipates being back in the South African side soon and will enable them to come out of the pressure with positive results in prestigious games with his ability to lead them from the front in future, provided they have faith in his leadership qualities.

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South Africa batsman Jacques Rudolph eyeing a comeback to international cricket

South African batsman Jacques Rudolph has claimed to be ready for an International comeback, after showing some strong performances in the domestic season. He last played for the national-side back in 2006, but has been unable to impress the selectors since then. The stylish left-hander has represented his team in 35 Test matches, 45 One Day Internationals (ODIs) and just one T20 game.
The 29-year-old stated, “Looking back over the last nine or 10 years, I've learnt a lot. There were a lot of character building things that happened in my career and I'm in a good space at the moment. My first priority is to try and get back into the team and to establish myself in all three forms of the game.”
Rudolph doesn’t have good memories of the last matches he played for his team in any format of the game. The last international game he played for his country was a Test match against Sri Lanka, in August 2006. However, he was unable to make an impression back then, scoring a total of 28 runs in both his innings. The Proteas lost that match by just one wicket in the end.
South Africa were also on the losing side in the last ODI and T20, which featured Rudolph. The promising left-hander would want to change this history and contribute to his team’s success in the future, especially in difficult circumstances. He performed well under pressure situations in the domestic events, both as a player and a leader of the Titans.
Commenting on his team’s inability to perform in pressure situations, Rudolph stated, “We do carry this tag of chokers. Some people think it's fair, others think it's unfair. I think, to a degree, that it's unfair. But, in pressure situations, we just haven't been able to go through.”
Like many other South Africans, Rudolph was also disappointed over his team’s failure to live up to the expectations in the ICC World Cup 2011. The Proteas had a very strong start to the tournament, ending up at the top of their pool. However, they were unable to go through the knockout stages, losing their quarter-final match against a weaker New Zealand side.

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