Our Terms & Conditions | Our Privacy Policy
South Africa will host India in a four-match T20 International series.
Though he would not be baited by the media into calling it a World Cup final rematch, Proteas captain Aiden Markram did admit on Thursday his team were eager to hit back against India in the first fixture of their T20 International series in Durban on Friday.
South Africa will face India for the first time since they lost by seven runs to the world’s top-ranked side in the T20 World Cup final in Barbados in June.
“I wouldn’t say it brings up any scars from the World Cup, but obviously it brings out a lot of excitement to try get one back on them,” Markram said.
Despite India fielding an under-strength squad, Markram said the Proteas were excited to clash with the powerhouse tourists.
The work never stops!
Our boys in & are priming themselves both mentally and physically for the Inbound tour against India!
The 1st of 4 T20i’s kicks off tomorrow at Hollywoodbets Kingsmead Stadium in Durban.#WozaNawe #BePartOfIt#SAvIND pic.twitter.com/eNx2Swhl72
— Proteas Men (@ProteasMenCSA) November 7, 2024
With the Proteas also fielding some players who did not turn out at the World Cup, however, the skipper didn’t believe Friday’s match (starting at 5pm) would bring back many memories from their battle at the global showpiece, and it was not something the SA squad had discussed.
“It’s the same countries, I guess, but the personnel has changed from both teams,” Markram said.
“It’s always an exciting series when you play against India, especially when you can play them at home, so it’s a series we always look forward to, but we haven’t addressed anything about it being a rematch.”
Chasing big scores
From a personal perspective, Markram hoped to lead from the front against India by making some valuable contributions at the top of the order.
In the first 25 innings of his T20 International career, the skipper hit nine half-centuries, but he has not hit a fifty in his last 24 innings.
Though he admitted he was hungry for a big score, however, he felt it was equally important to ensure he was doing his job in setting the pace for his team.
“Obviously you want to make big scores and contribute massively to the team and it can be quite frustrating, getting out after getting off to a quick start, but you don’t ever want to go into your shell after you find yourself getting in,” he said.
“You want to keep being expansive… not just for yourself but for the team as well, and trust that a big score will follow.
“So obviously it is frustrating to not have got a big one yet, but mentally I’m still feeling in a good space and hoping I can contribute big time for the team in this series.”
Images are for reference only.Images and contents gathered automatic from google or 3rd party sources.All rights on the images and contents are with their legal original owners.
Aggregated From –
Comments are closed.