The Proteas have subtly emerged from the shadows and are creating waves that have stunned observers and fans alike. Despite being fairly undervalued, they beat England, the current world champions, in a dramatic One Day International series earlier this year. They were in a state of upheaval as the World Cup approached following the sudden departure of head coach Mark Boucher, but a new era has begun under the direction of coaches Shukri Conrad for Tests and Rob Walter for T20Is and ODIs.
The Proteas have experienced a remarkable change in the present and have become a force to be reckoned with in all formats. They’ve outlined a nearly perfect course, going unbeaten in each ODI series since the year started. Notably, their recent spectacular victory against Australia has catapulted them into the top half of the World Cup rankings, a rise that has not gone ignored. When discussing the same, coach Rob Walter said, “Things must have changed because a few weeks ago, we were six to eight (favorites to win the World Cup), so it’s nice that the perception of the team has changed a little bit,” says the player who doesn’t pay too much attention to commentary.
“The most crucial one is to continue acting favorably toward our brand.” Rob Walter
Temba Bavuma, the team’s captain, is committed to taking his team to their first World Cup victory and has goals as high as the Indian sky. The 48-year-old stresses the value of making every exhibition match matter so that the Proteas are at their peak on October 7 when they take on Sri Lanka at Delhi’s Arun Jaitley Stadium.
“From our perspective, it’s incredibly crucial to put warm-up games into perspective; we need to get what we need out of it. The most crucial one is to continue representing our brand correctly. We will undoubtedly strive to make sure we make the most of that fixture that we are able to,” he continued.
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