Good batting partnerships will be key for the South Africans in Manchester.
Nadine de Klerk, left, and Shabnim Ismail, high five after helping the Proteas beat Pakistan at the T20 World Cup. Picture: David Rogers/Getty Images
Though it is not a do-or-die game, Proteas women’s team batting coach Andrew Puttick has labelled Sunday’s T20 World Cup fixture against India in Manchester a “must-win” for the South Africans.
So far the Proteas women’s team have lost to Australia and beaten Pakistan and they will not want to end up relying on other results to go their way for them to proceed at the tournament.
“It’s a high-pressure game on Sunday, it’s a must-win,” said Puttick ahead of the clash which starts at 3.30pm.
“If we want to make our lives easier, we need to put in a good performance and hopefully that leads to a W.”
Puttick though added he wanted the players to play with freedom.
“We want the girls to go out and put their best foot forward, and not be afraid. They must be clear in their roles and what they need to do.
“It’s a big game (on Sunday) but this is why one plays World Cups. Everyone’s excited.”
Partnerships
The South Africans have struggled so far at the tournament, being comfortably beaten by Australia and narrowly edging Pakistan. Puttick said building batting partnerships was the key to a better performance and success on Sunday.
“Our batting performance (against Pakistan) was adequate,” said Puttick.
“We needed to win the game, which we did. But, we didn’t have the partnership to make it a smooth chase.
“We need those partnerships, especially in the middle overs, so we can take things into the death overs and hopefully get a good score.”
Another dry wicket is expected in Manchester which will mean more spin bowling, something the Proteas, and all the team in fact, have faced so far in the tournament.
“We’re likely to get up to 16 overs of spin (on Sunday),” said the former Proteas Test opener.
“We need to plan and prepare well again, but we’ve already had a game here (against Australia) and have an idea of what to expect.
“Like everyone, with regards to spin bowling, you just have to put in some time and thought into how you go about batting. It normally means hitting the ball hard and flat into the spaces and running well.”
