Morris, Parnell vie for allrounder slot

As much as Chris Morris enjoyed "connecting" with his South African team-mates on their first assignment together in two months, he also issued a warning to one of them: Wayne Parnell, his chief competitor for a place in the starting XI. Morris and Parnell are the two pace-bowling all-rounders in the current squad and there is likely to be space for only one of them to take the field and Morris made it clear he wants that one to be him.

"It's quite a big responsibility to be the all-rounder in the team," Morris said. "It's an opportunity I am trying to grab with two hands. I am trying to grab it and go because it's what I want to do."

Morris was South Africa's preferred allrounder at the World T20 after eye-catching performances in the limited-overs matches against England in February. He single-handedly kept South Africa in the ODI series with a swashbuckling 62 in Johannesburg and he hopes his batting could set him apart. "I have put a lot of hard work on especially my batting," Morris said. "I look at it as an exciting phase of my career. I am at an age where I think I can cement my spot and it's an opportunity to do it so I am going to give it my all."

At 29, Morris is three years older than Parnell and he is also ahead in game-time terms. While Parnell has been at home in April and May, Morris has been toiling at the IPL, where he justified his million-dollar deal. "The IPL was one a good one personally," he said. "It's a good place to learn more about yourself as a person and as a cricketer. It was a very good year for me. I will take a lot of confidence out of the IPL."

Morris' Delhi Daredevils finished third from bottom on the IPL table after winning as many of their 14 matches as they lost. Morris played in 12 of those and was their leading wicket-taker with 13 scalps at 23.69 and also did his bit with the bat. Morris finished as Delhi's fifth run-scorer with 195 runs at 65.00 which included an unbeaten 32-ball 82.

Still, Morris admitted the international game was "a different animal," and that it would take more than a few strong performances in a T20 competition to succeed in making the step up. "I have never been [in the West Indies] before," he said. "It's going to take a couple of overs to adjust."

Neither has Parnell, which could leave South Africa with an interesting choice of who to include. For all Parnell's recent inactivity, he has fought his way back to into the national side with strong performances in the 50-overs format for his franchise, the Cobras. He was their highest wicket-taker, and third highest overall in the domestic one-day cup and his coach Paul Adams said he has "never seen Wayne play better."