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As the Women Proteas begin their quest for a maiden World Cup trophy this afternoon against England in Perth, Australia, they will have only one thing on their minds – execute.
Not in the medieval sense, but in the way they bat, bowl and field.
The South African women have had their opportunities for glory in the past, albeit few and far between, but the same mistakes kept costing them.
Losing wickets in clusters, bowling well early on but wayward at the back end, and some crucial misfielding and dropped catches have all contributed to a side that has not really stepped into the top echelons of the game – yet.
In their last warm-up game this week, the team came close to beating Australia for the first time in history, but lost it in the last over.
Coming up against the top-ranked T20 side, the Proteas had them at 35-4 in six overs before Meg Lanning and Rachel Haynes navigated the middle overs with precision to put on an 83-run partnership.
Earlier on in the day, Dane van Niekerk opened the batting with Lizelle Lee and smashed 79 runs in 10 overs. But, even with that good platform, they managed only 148 as they lost four wickets for less than 25 runs in the last few overs.
Coach Hilton Moreeng acknowledged this, saying that, “in the last six overs, we disappointed ourselves again by losing wickets in clusters and handing the momentum back to the opposition, which was the difference in the game”.
Despite this, Moreeng hopes that this shows that they can compete with the best in the world – they just need to execute consistently.
And that’s where he feels they have an ace up their sleeve.
“Where we are now, we have an experienced squad. What has helped mentally is our preparation, and every member in the squad knows what is coming and how to play the different conditions,” he said, while taking into account that most of the senior players have played in Australia in the Women’s Big Bash League.
The last – and only – time the Women Proteas have made it out of the group stages and reached the semifinals of the T20 World Cup was in 2014, when they lost to England.
Eight members of this year’s squad featured in that tournament, with former captain Mignon du Preez, Shabnim Ismail and Van Niekerk having been at every T20 World Cup since its inception in 2009.
So it’s still a wonder that, with the experience they boast, South Africa are still considered to be the underdogs.
“It’s okay to be the underdogs, but we have world-class players, match winners and world beaters, and it’s just time that we step up. We’ve played a lot of cricket for our country and have been playing for 10 years together now – the bulk of us, at least,” Van Niekerk said when told of how other teams viewed the Proteas.
South Africa is ranked sixth in the world and has one player in the top 10 of each of the batting, bowling and all-rounder rankings. But this counted for little when they teed off against third-ranked New Zealand earlier this month.
South Africa lost the series 3-1, but, again, it was the experience that was vital, especially learning that if you make 150 or more, as they did in the only game they won, against quality opposition, your chances of winning dramatically increase. Having talent, experience and the ability to make plans are important skills, but these have to be put into practice and different and executed on the field, especially on the world stage.
Van Niekerk summed it up well: “We’ll take the [underdog] tag, but it’s time to start making our mark on world cricket.”
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