He might have said it in jest but Sports Minister Fikile Mbalula gave the Proteas a timely reminder to keep their eyes firmly on the prize when he said yesterday: “Don’t be like Shakes ”.
In his unique way, Mbalula used humour, at Bafana Bafana’s expense, to send the message that the recent 4-1 series win over the West Indies counted for nought now that the World Cup was just nine days away.
Proteas coach Russell Domingo knows it, too, that despite the scintillating form shown by batsmen AB de Villiers, Hashim Amla and Rilee Rossouw plus bowlers Dale Steyn and Imran Tahir, his men will have to bring their best to the contest in Australia and New Zealand.
South Africa are third in the ICC ODI rankings, behind Australia and India, whom they meet in Pool B. Their form is second only to the Aussies while their major group stage opponents West Indies, Pakistan and India are struggling for wins.
India have not won a game Down Under since they toured there two months ago, while Pakistan were dismembered limb for limb in New Zealand recently.
In spite of this, Domingo left no room for complacency in the camp.
“There is no plain sailing when it comes to World Cup games, even in the initial group stages,” said Domingo.
“All three of those big countries have won a World Cup and they know what it takes to win World Cup games. We haven’t done that yet, so there is absolutely no thought of complacency or of any easy games.
“Zimbabwe, whom we play upfront, will demand a lot of respect. They beat Australia a few months ago. If you’re not at your best against any of those sides then you could come unstuck.”
In enervating Johannesburg heat, the Proteas faced one final voir dire from the press before jetting off to Hamilton, where they will prepare for their first match against Zimbabwe on February 15.
Captain De Villiers, whose performances are the pillar on which national hopes rest, didn’t hide the fact that the squad was under pressure to put to bed the “chokers” tag that has hounded them in previous ICC events.
“Yes, we are feeling pressure and there is no hiding from that.
“We have never won a World Cup and it is something that’s counting against us. People call us chokers and there’s no hiding from that either. We just have to stick together, drive each other as a team and make sure we win those big pressure situations.
“We gained a lot of confidence from the series win against the Windies.
“Individual performances are driven by the team . Me scoring the hundred at the Wanderers, Hashim getting hundreds, Imran doing well, those are all team driven.
“It will be important not to obsess over the mental aspect of the game.”
Fresh from achieving the fastest ODI century (off 31 balls on his way to 149 against the Windies), De Villiers said he was aware that opposing teams probably had their noses pressed against video screens analysing his game-play in search of weaknesses.
All signs point to a better sustained World Cup challenge this time around, although the Proteas have seldom lacked form going into the global showpiece. For now, though, they are focused on managing their expectations and keeping their heads level to avoid the train wreckage of 1999, 2003 and 2011.
Mbalula's call to arms
In his unique way, Mbalula used humour, at Bafana Bafana’s expense, to send the message that the recent 4-1 series win over the West Indies counted for nought now that the World Cup was just nine days away.
Proteas coach Russell Domingo knows it, too, that despite the scintillating form shown by batsmen AB de Villiers, Hashim Amla and Rilee Rossouw plus bowlers Dale Steyn and Imran Tahir, his men will have to bring their best to the contest in Australia and New Zealand.
South Africa are third in the ICC ODI rankings, behind Australia and India, whom they meet in Pool B. Their form is second only to the Aussies while their major group stage opponents West Indies, Pakistan and India are struggling for wins.
India have not won a game Down Under since they toured there two months ago, while Pakistan were dismembered limb for limb in New Zealand recently.
In spite of this, Domingo left no room for complacency in the camp.
“There is no plain sailing when it comes to World Cup games, even in the initial group stages,” said Domingo.
“All three of those big countries have won a World Cup and they know what it takes to win World Cup games. We haven’t done that yet, so there is absolutely no thought of complacency or of any easy games.
“Zimbabwe, whom we play upfront, will demand a lot of respect. They beat Australia a few months ago. If you’re not at your best against any of those sides then you could come unstuck.”
In enervating Johannesburg heat, the Proteas faced one final voir dire from the press before jetting off to Hamilton, where they will prepare for their first match against Zimbabwe on February 15.
Captain De Villiers, whose performances are the pillar on which national hopes rest, didn’t hide the fact that the squad was under pressure to put to bed the “chokers” tag that has hounded them in previous ICC events.
“Yes, we are feeling pressure and there is no hiding from that.
“We have never won a World Cup and it is something that’s counting against us. People call us chokers and there’s no hiding from that either. We just have to stick together, drive each other as a team and make sure we win those big pressure situations.
“We gained a lot of confidence from the series win against the Windies.
“Individual performances are driven by the team . Me scoring the hundred at the Wanderers, Hashim getting hundreds, Imran doing well, those are all team driven.
“It will be important not to obsess over the mental aspect of the game.”
Fresh from achieving the fastest ODI century (off 31 balls on his way to 149 against the Windies), De Villiers said he was aware that opposing teams probably had their noses pressed against video screens analysing his game-play in search of weaknesses.
All signs point to a better sustained World Cup challenge this time around, although the Proteas have seldom lacked form going into the global showpiece. For now, though, they are focused on managing their expectations and keeping their heads level to avoid the train wreckage of 1999, 2003 and 2011.
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