Temba Bavuma.
Credit: Reuters Photo
Kolkata: The nervousness was palpable on Temba Bavuma’s face as he walked in for the pre-match conference ahead of South Africa’s semifinal against Australia.
Given Proteas’ abysmal record in knockouts, questions were bound to be around their state of mind. Although he sort of came prepared, Bavuma admitted there’s anxiety in the camp but was confident this bunch will become the first South African side to reach the final of a ODI World Cup.
“I think from a skill point of view, from a physical point of view, guys are quite confident,” said Bavuma after declaring he’s not ‘100 percent’ fit to play the semifinal. “We’ll have our normal evening team meeting where the team will be announced. I'm sure there'll be conversations that happen there within that meetings around the occasion of tomorrow, but I honestly don't anticipate it to be any different.
“There's a sense of calmness within the team and obviously the normal level of anxiety that you would expect of going into the game tomorrow. In a state of mind, obviously a bit nervous of the game. It will be our first semifinal as a team. But I think the feeling is no different I guess from any game that we've encountered within the World Cup. I think we'll take a lot of confidence with our performances up until this point. A lot of people believe that this could be the year that we see ourselves in the final. And I mean, look as a team, individually we'd like nothing better than that.”
Australia possess a phenomenal record in the semifinals of the ODI World Cup, having won six out of the eight games they’ve contested in. They also have the wood over South Africa, having beaten them once and tying another in the semifinal stage of ICC’s marquee event. In that tied match, Australia advanced to the final having beating South Africa in the Super Six Stage. When asked if Australia hold the edge considering the history, skipper Pat Cummins said previous results count for little.
“I don't think it counts for too much. You know, obviously you start from scratch every time you play. They're a team we've played quite a lot and know quite well. So, I think what helps us is we've got a lot of guys that have been in this situation before that have won One-Day World Cup, T20 World Cup, various other tournaments in big moments. So, I think that really helps.
“We feel lucky that we've been in these situations quite a bit, a lot of our players. So, you know what it takes, but also, you're not really weighed down by history. You get more excited about the challenge and just get stuck into what needs to be done. So, yeah, hard to speak on their behalf, but I do know each World Cup, it does seem to be the story that South Africa haven't quite achieved, obviously, what they set out to do.”