Premier fast bowler Kagiso Rabada will "heavily consider" captaining South African national team if CSA offers him the top job and is not averse to the tough multi-tasking which is essential for the role.
Rabada along with Jasprit Bumrah and Pat Cummins forms the great modern pace bowlers' troika. Among them, Cummins is the regular Australian captain while Bumrah has been a stop-gap leader in Tests and T20Is for India.
Now, Rabada wants to join them if given the opportunity and the 29-year-old is contemplating about the mental shift he needs to make for the big responsibility.
"I have been asked this question quite a lot. And it's made me consider it. I think it's going to take some maturity on my side. But if the question was thrown to me by Cricket South Africa or by one of the coaches, I would consider it heavily," Rabada told PTI in an exclusive interview.
"And already I was thinking of what sort of shift it would take because now you can't just focus on yourself, you have to focus on everyone else, and not just on-field stuff, but also off-field stuff.
"I think it would take maturity most definitely and a whole lot of planning that would have to go with it. So, I would consider it heavily if that question was asked of me," said the man with 327 Test wickets in 70 appearances.
With 168 ODI wickets and 71 T20I scalps under his belt, Rabada has been effective across formats.
But he believes that one needs to be judicious while enjoying the challenges of a rigorous itinerary as it gives an opportunity to earn more but should also listen to the demands of the body.
"Speaking for myself. I'm very grateful to be getting the opportunities that we're getting. Especially to play for the kinds of fruits that you get from these leagues. Where your earning potential goes right up."
He did maintain that playing for the Proteas will remain his first priority.
"I think cricket has grown and it's been really good for cricketers to be able to earn more than they have in the past. Unfortunately, now, fortunately, unfortunately, you actually have to manage those two. Obviously, my faith and my loyalty lies with South Africa. The Proteas. You're thinking team first, obviously.
"You just have to find ways to make sure that your body is good. And to make sure that you're as efficient and as intense as you are right throughout the year. It can be quite challenging. But it's a challenge that is worth taking. So I think I've enjoyed it."
However, he believes in putting all his eggs in one basket.
"But you really do have to have your ducks in a row (all eggs in one basket). Otherwise, I think mentally and physically you will blow out. It does take quite a bit of consideration into how you're going to go about your year."
Rabada is certain that there will be some impact after using saliva on white Kookaburra ball during the IPL but he is not sure whether there will be reverse swing on offer or not.
"Yes, I think it can (have an) impact. Simply because of the frequency of when you'll be shining the ball. Having to use your sweat the whole time. I guess in India it wouldn't be an issue because it tends to get quite hot."
The world of cricket is increasingly becoming data-driven but Rabada believes that numbers and analytics is for reference with a player like him intrinsically trusting his gut.
"I think you do need quite a few different strategies these days because of the amount of data that's going around the circuit and plans and analysts. Although you don't really always do what the analyst says, most of the time you'll go on your gut and the analyst is just more of a reference."
But he conceded that the 'X' factor of players is slowly vanishing after the data influx.
"I do think that these days, especially in T20 cricket, the playing field has been levelled almost in a way because there's so much data that's going around.
"So, players' X factor is not quite the same because we play against each other quite a lot and you know what somebody is going to do. And so, I guess the wide yorker is just a way of negating someone's strength."
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