South Africa are slated to take on Afghanistan in the first semifinal of the ICC T20 World Cup 2024 at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy in Trinidad and Tobago on Thursday.
The Proteas, who have earned the unflattering tag of chokers for their perennial failures in the business end of ICC tournaments, have their best possible opportunity in recent history to clinch a maiden World Cup trophy as they are just two games away from a historic title.
South Africa coach Rob Walter opined that everyone back home and in the camp are dreaming about lifting an elusive ICC trophy.
“Definitely it’s always great to dream and I think everyone in South Africa dreams of the time when a trophy gets lifted. No doubt that will happen. Whether it’s going to be this week, that remains to be seen,” Walter said.
“We’re just going to try and play the best game of cricket that we can. And we still haven’t played our best game yet,” he added.
They have weathered their way up to the final-four of the T20 over showpiece in the Caribbean by surviving multiple close-calls and seem to have good value as they rock up to the semifinal encounter.
“From the closeness point of view, yeah, we’ve managed to get over the line in quite a number of close games in the lead up to the semifinal, which for a team has been great for us,” the 48-year-old added.
“We’ve potentially missed out on a few of those moments in the past, and this time around we managed to get over the line. So, we certainly take confidence out of that.
“We still want to play our best cricket in the key moments of the game tomorrow,” he stated.
The Proteas have fumbled at the penultimate hurdle multiple times since their return to the cricketing fold in the year 1992, after the apartheid ban, but Walter opined that a lot has changed within the team from the near-misses of yesteryears.
“Look, I said, the near misses in the past, they belong to the people who missed them. To be honest, this team is a different team. We own whatever is ours to own. And so, our nearest reflection point is this tournament where we’ve managed to get over the line. So that’s what we think about.”
He added that they will respect the stage considering the high stakes and will be mindful of the occasion.
“It’s never just another game. I think that sort of rhetoric around semifinals is always untrue, or people trying to downplay the occasion. Certainly, we don’t do that. It is a semifinal of a World Cup, and we appreciate that and we’re looking forward to it.”
The Proteas have been unlucky to crash out at crucial junctures in tournament over the years, but Walter asserted that luck would always rump luck.
“I don’t think you can win a cricket game because of luck. I think potentially a few things can go your way but there’s a few things that might not. So, skill will always trump luck, that’s for sure. So, I’d like to think that.”
Afghanistan have surprised many across the globe with their stunning run to a maiden semifinal, which bodes well for the game according to Walter.
“We’re seeing Afghanistan in a T20 semifinal. It’s awesome for the game of cricket. I love the way they play the game and the way they support it.”
However, he mentioned that the Proteas have done their homework on their opponents and will be well prepared for the challenges the surprise entrants might throw their way.
“Look, I mean, a number of their players play in a number of the leagues around the world. In this day and age, there’s not too many players where there’s no footage or no information,” he said.
“So, from an Afghanistan player point of view, we do have that sort of information. We’ve also got an entire World Cup, which they’ve also played seven games in,” Walter explained.
“So, from that point of view, we’ve had the opportunity to watch games of cricket as near as last night and then also in the different leagues that the guys have played and played together. So, we’re comfortable with our knowledge in it,” he added.
He went on to laud the Afghan unit terming them a well-balanced unit led by some charismatic names such as their fantastic skipper Rashid Khan and asserted that their oppositions aren’t a ‘one-man show’.
“I think you, yeah, you would have seen it all in the last two days. I think they are a well-rounded team. Gone are the days where there is an area of the team that is not strong. They wouldn’t be in a semi-final if that was the case,” the 48-year-old said.
“You’re talking about some world-class spinners. Everyone knows about the world-class spinners led by Rashid Khan. I mean, he’s a top-class T20 spinner anywhere in the world. So, we know about that. But as I said, it’s not a one-man show anymore. That’s for sure,” he concluded.
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