Heading into a crunch match on Wednesday, head coach Shukri Conrad says South Africa will be ready to absorb the pressure in their T20 World Cup semifinal against New Zealand in Kolkata, after proving they can fight to the death in their group stage clash with Afghanistan earlier in the tournament.
In most of the games they had played thus far, the unbeaten Proteas secured convincing victories, but they were made to dig deep in their first-round fixture against Afghanistan which they clinched in a second super over after a thrilling encounter.
That win gave the national side real confidence in the build-up to the knockout stages, according to Conrad, as they looked to reach the final for the second successive edition of the T20 showpiece.
“I thought the Afghanistan game was massive in many respects because it could so easily have not gone our way,” Conrad said.
“The pressure is really up on us against New Zealand, but in some sort of way [the Afghanistan match] really pulled the group together.”
Even in their other games, despite winning by comfortable margins, the Proteas had managed to find ways to claw their way back when they found themselves under pressure in challenging situations.
“I think that’s the mark of really good sides. When things get tough, they’re still able to fashion something and eke out the right result,” the coach said.
‘Chuffed with all-round game’
Conrad admitted their fielding had not been up to their own high standards, but he was full of praise for the consistent performances the squad had delivered both with bat and ball.
Proteas captain Aiden Markram, who had contributed 268 runs in seven games at a strike rate of 175.16 (with three half-centuries), and fellow top-order batter Ryan Rickelton, who had hit 228 runs at a strike rate of 171.42, were among the top six run scorers at the global spectacle.
With the ball, the Proteas seam attack had been superb. Lungi Ngidi, who had taken 12 wickets in six games at an economy rate of 6.87, Corbin Bosch (11 scalps at 6.78) and Marco Jansen (11 scalps at 9.27) were among the top eight wicket takers in the tournament.
“I think there’s that calmness in the side, especially in the batting unit, that whatever the situation, someone will find a way,” Conrad said.
“I say especially the batting unit, but the bowlers have been – save for maybe the Afghanistan game, where we leaked so many wides and no balls – ever since then, I can only take my hat off to the bowlers and how they’ve responded. So I’m really chuffed with our all-round game.”
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