T20 WC: Injured hand continuously improving, will have first net session on Friday, says Bavuma
Oct 14, 2021
Dubai [UAE], October 14 : South Africa skipper Temba Bavuma on Thursday said that his injured hand is showing continuous improvement and he will have his first net session on Friday ahead of the upcoming T20 World Cup.
Bavuma had suffered a broken thumb in a series against Sri Lanka last month. He now expects to pass the fitness test to play the warm-up fixture against Afghanistan on Monday.
"My hand is definitely improving by the day. It's getting stronger and I am getting a lot more comfortable with it. Tomorrow will be the first time I am having a live net, facing bowlers, so I am looking forward to that and that will give me a better indication of how far I've progressed. At the moment, everything is still on track. I am looking to play in the warm-up games. I am feeling good," ESPNcricinfo quoted Bavuma as saying.
"What I am trying to get out of it is to get comfortable with my hand and with what I can do and, I guess, make peace with what I can't do. I can't say I am scared or anything like that. It's hard for me to give any emotions. It's just for me to get the necessary comfort and also to assess where I am," he added.
Talking about his role in the batting-order, Bavuma said: "My role is quite obvious and clear. I am someone to come in at the top, and if there is an opportunity to come in at No. 3, I will fill in that spot."
"As a batter, I'd like to be able to get on a nice wicket where you can hit through the line and throw your hands, but the general trend from looking at the IPL is that we won't have that luxury as batters. We will have to really graft out there. We will really have to be smart. Scores of 150-160 look like winning scores. As batters, we are going to have to dig deep," he added.
Bavuma also addressed the slow nature of wickets in Sharjah and said that in the end, adapting to the conditions will hold the key.
"Looking at the games played in Sharjah, it's been rather interesting. Wickets have been a bit tougher and guys have had to be smart, think on their feet and adjust accordingly. We don't know what state the wickets are going to be in. We expect the wickets to be a bit worn out. The biggest thing for us is to try and assess and adapt as quickly as we can on the day," said Bavuma.
