Amla hopes his time will come soon

MUMBAI: South Africa have come to rely heavily on the performance of their skipper AB de Villiers as they continue to strive to be world-beaters. But, another batsman who has played no less a role in their dominance, in Tests and ODIs, is Hashim Amla. And, as often is the case, the duo is a study in contrast. While de Villiers possesses the ability to destroy any bowling attack and attempts strokes that leaves everyone bewildered, Amla is one of the game's stylists, a tribe that seems to be vanishing from the game.
However, while de Villiers has gone about his usual ways in the current series against India amassing 239 runs at 79.67 in four innings, Amla has found it difficult to express himself in the manner he is generally capable of. Having garnered only 66 runs in the four matches, the 32-year-old has found it difficult to negotiate the Indian spinners, falling to Amit Mishra on a couple of occasions and once to Axar Patel.
Nevertheless, the experienced batsman, who is only 15 runs shy of reaching the 6,000 run-mark in ODIs, has an ideal opportunity to make amends at the Wankhede today as the visitors look to clinch the series. "Obviously, I would have liked to score more runs. But you can't score runs all the time. It will be great if I get good runs here. As a batsman, I would like to contribute to the team, and I think my time will come soon," said Amla on Saturday. "I have got something going in most of the innings of late. But I am getting out all the time," he added.
Amla enjoyed an extended net session where the emphasis was on tackling spin. He feels the Proteas will have to be at their best in or der to clinch the series Sunday. While hoping that paceman Morne Morkel would be fit for the key clash, he rued the absence of JP Duminy.