The Springboks’ World Cup win last year will inspire the South Africa women’s cricket team said the captain Dane van Niekerk on Sunday who added they will try to emulate them at the upcoming ICC Twenty20 World Cup in Australia.
In 2018, Siya Kolisi, South Africa’s first black test captain helped to transform the Springboks side who won their third World Cup title by beating England in the final in Japan. However, South Africa women’s cricket team have never gone beyond the semi-finals in the women’s Twenty World Cup but Dane van Niekerk hopes to take the side further in the mega event in Australia from Feb. 21 to March 8.
“I think the make-up of the whole squad makes for a really good show and I’m a big believer in the power of sport in uniting the country,” the all-rounder wrote in her column for the International Cricket Council website.
“No women’s team has won a World Cup before and we are hoping that as a team, we can unite the country in our own way, especially considering the challenges we face as women in South Africa. We are aiming to go out there and do something special for our country just like Siya Kolisi and the Springboks did in the Rugby World Cup in Japan,” she further added.
South Africa are in the Group B and begin their campaign against inaugural champions England in Perth on Feb. 23. Currently, they are playing against New Zealand.
South Africa have announced a balanced side where they will depend on their pace attack which included Marizanne Kapp, Shabnim Ismail, etc. Along with them, they will have their spin all-rounder Dane van Niekerk, the captain herself. Moreover, they have the flamboyant opener, Lizelle Lee who can turn the table on her own.
“We have a great team, one of the best we’ve ever been able to pick and send to an ICC event. We have a full-strength squad, which makes everything easier for me as a captain. We’ve got a great balance of experience and youth, which makes for a good set-up in the side,” added the captain.
