Captain Hashim Amla Looks to Lead the Way for South Africa

It seems the burden of captaincy is not weighing too heavily on the shoulders of Hashim Amla.

South Africa's Test skipper made 208 against West Indies in Centurion on Thursday, as the hosts piled on the runs following a sticky start to the series.

Put into bat, they lost three wickets with the score stuck on 57 in the morning session on Day 1. However, thanks to Amla and AB de Villiers, who made 152, they did not suffer a further setback until a further 308 runs had been added to their total.

The skipper combined to contribute a further 155 runs in partnership with debutant Stiaan van Zyl before finally perishing when he lofted spinner Sulieman Benn to Jerome Taylor at long-on.

Amla took the decision to declare his side’s innings at 552-5 shortly after Van Zyl reached three figures, though his bowlers were denied the chance to have a go at the tourists with the new ball due to rain.

His captaincy skills may be put to the test over the next three days, as there could yet be further interruptions to proceedings because of bad weather. Thunderstorms could hinder play on Friday, per Weather.com, though the outlook for the weekend is much brighter.

Now ensconced at four in the batting order—a move down from three, which he confirmed in the pre-match press conference he had made to give him a “little bit of extra time,” per Firdose Moonda of ESPN Cricinfo—the right-hander knows there is pressure to perform in a new-look batting order.

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In home Tests, double-century in first match as captain: Graham Dowling, Sunil Gavaskar, Martin Crowe, Shiv Chanderpaul, Hashim Amla. #SAvWI

— Cricket Record (@record_cricinfo) December 18, 2014"

South Africa currently own top spot in the ICC Test rankings. After the current three-match series against the men from the Caribbean, they do not play in the longest format again until England arrive on their shores next December.

Amla, though, has made a positive start in the job. He has won three matches and drawn the other since replacing the retired Graeme Smith as captain, with all of those results recorded overseas.

He made 139 not out to help earn a draw in the second Test against Sri Lanka in Colombo, a result that also secured a series win, and has now become the first South African captain to hit a double hundred on home soil.

The 31-year-old has shown a liking for big scores; he is the only player for South Africa to have registered a triple hundred, finishing up unbeaten on 311 at the Oval in 2012, as only a declaration put England’s beleaguered bowlers out of their misery.

While Amla churns out his runs, De Villiers does his work at the crease with a little more style. He makes batting look ridiculously easy, seemingly having an eternity to pick up line and length and then choose where to hit it. He is a touch player yet is someone who is just as capable of clearing the rope as he is working an easy single.

Antoinette Muller wrote for Bleacher Report after Day 1 at SuperSport Park about the brilliance of South Africa’s current ODI captain. Their Test leader has also provided another example of why he too is a world-class performer, albeit in his own unflappable way.

Amla has always been able to manipulate straight deliveries to leg with a flick of the wrists. Now, though, he has a much more rounded game, someone capable of scoring heavily on both sides of the wicket.

He is the owner of a rasping cover drive to anything that is pitched too full, plus he has also swept spinners to distraction. Just ask the India bowlers who toiled during his unbeaten 253 made in Nagpur in 2010 or England's Graeme Swann during the triple hundred at the Oval in 2012.

The dynamic duo of Amla and De Villiers, who both own Test averages in the 50s, will continue to be cornerstones for some time to come for a Proteas side that seem to be in very safe hands with their new leader, a man who picks his words carefully and looks to lead by example.