"We had 4 scrappy games that we pulled through": Proteas batter Klaasen ahead of facing England
Jun 20, 2024
Gros Islet [St Lucia], June 20 : Ahead of his clash against England in the Super Eights match of the T20 World Cup 2024 at the Daren Sammy National Cricket Stadium, South Africa batter Heinrich Klaasen said earlier they had four 'scrappy games' where they managed to clinch wins.
Speaking at the pre-match press conference, Klaasen hoped that they would get better wickets in their upcoming few matches of the tournament.
"We had four scrappy games that we pulled through. Hopefully, on better wickets, we can find our swings and be our natural selves. So that's the one positive that's still out there for us to go find. But the rest of the way we've been playing, the way we've been grafting and adapting to conditions is brilliant and that shows the maturity in the group as well," Klaasen said.
The Proteas batter Klaasen accepted that South Africa had a poor score against the US in their previous match.
"I thought we had a poor score against the USA and our bowlers got to put a little bit under the pump at the back end of the game. So, it was a good outing for the batters. I think the batters needed it more than the bowlers. Guys getting their swings again. It was quite difficult in America. And looking around, the Caribbean, the wickets are getting better and better. But we don't keep our hopes up hopefully we can get a good wicket in St. Lucia," he added.
South Africa were placed in Group D of the T20 World Cup 2024 along with Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Netherlands and Nepal. The Proteas displayed a stunning performance previously and won all their group-stage matches. They are coming into this match after beating the United States by 18 runs.
England Squad: Philip Salt, Jos Buttler (WK/C), Jonny Bairstow, Harry Brook, Moeen Ali, Liam Livingstone, Sam Curran, Jofra Archer, Adil Rashid, Mark Wood, Reece Topley, Ben Duckett, Will Jacks, Chris Jordan, Tom Hartley.
South Africa Squad: Quinton de Kock (WK), Reeza Hendricks, Aiden Markram (C), David Miller, Heinrich Klaasen, Tristan Stubbs, Marco Jansen, Keshav Maharaj, Kagiso Rabada, Anrich Nortje, Tabraiz Shamsi, Ryan Rickelton, Ottneil Baartman, Bjorn Fortuin, Gerald Coetzee.
