World Cup: Mind over matter for South Africa

If one were to talk of the three ‘Ts’ in cricket, South Africa score 100 on 100 when it comes to talent and technique. The temperament column, though, takes a hit. At times, the Proteas score a big zero!

When Graeme Smith’s men step out to play the third quarterfinal at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium on Friday, they would be yearning to battle those mental blocks, that ‘popular’ belief that they are chokers and, of course, a decent-looking New Zealand outfit.

South Africa have been in similar situations before. In 1996, Brian Lara ended their winning streak with a magnificent century in the quarterfinals. The sequence of events in 1999 (Allan Donald goof-up) and 2003 (poor math) have been shown on TV way too many times for any of us to forget! Their thrilling win over India in Nagpur did, to some extent, relieve them of that ‘tag’, but reputations don’t change overnight.

Perhaps, that’s what Daniel Vettori would be hoping for. The Kiwis have made the World Cup semifinal on five occasions, including the last time in the Caribbean. The bespectacled Vettori looks very much like Aamir Khan did in Mangal Pandey — the Bollywood superstar sported a much longer and thicker moustache, though — and he wants the South Africans to commit those mistakes again. Nothing revolutionary about that!

On paper, South Africa look strong — really strong — in all departments. And that’s despite the below-par run their best player, all-rounder Jacques Kallis, has had. A formidable army of batsmen, an excellent battery of pacers, a reliable troika of spinners, plenty of dependable part-timers and a reaffirming bunch of fielders make them hot favourites on a pitch that won’t exactly keep the scorers busy.

South Africa will be bolstered by the return of their most in-form batsman, AB de Villiers, and expressmen Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel. Wayne Parnell and Lonwabo Tsotsobe, who got a game against Bangladesh, will take their rightful places on the bench. A decision on whether Morne van Wyk would keep wickets would be taken before the game, Smith informed.

New Zealand’s biggest advantage is the return of Vettori the spinner more than Vettori the captain. Ross Taylor marshalled his resources fairly well during his stint as stand-in captain, but he sure missed the wily tweaker.

Vettori is, by far, the best spinner among the 22 players who’ll take the field on Thursday, but will he be as effective as he is capable of being? Remember, he hasn’t played a game since the March 8 fixture against Pakistan and South Africa are aware of that. Also, Brendon McCullum has a sore knee but Vettori said the swashbuckling wicketkeeper-opener will certainly play.

New Zealand’s all-rounders — especially offie and hard-hitter Nathan McCullum — will have to play a crucial role, but it is imperative that No 3 bat Jesse Ryder justify his talent and place in the side with a responsible outing. Neither pace nor spin can rattle the mercurial southpaw, but he’ll have his task cut out in an important game like this.

Moreover, only three Black Caps batsmen have scored over 200 runs in this World Cup and Ryder, unfortunately, isn’t one of them. Signs are that Dhaka will witness another lopsided affair. Vettori & Co are more than capable of avoiding that ignominy. But will they?