“You can’t get too funky.” That was the message Proteas coach Russell Domingo wanted to convey to his team ahead of their departure for the World T20 in India.
Domingo, who is known to be compulsive about statistics, has the experience of two previous major ICC tournaments behind him heading into the short-format showpiece. On both occasions Domingo’s teams progressed to the semi-finals - 2014 World T20 and 2015 World Cup - hence establishing the 41-year-old as South Africa’s most successful major ICC tournament coach since re-admission.
In both those contests, in Dhaka and Auckland respectively, South Africa came up short after posting hugely competitive totals batting first. At Eden Park specifically, it was small margins that led to the Proteas’ exit with a drop catch here and missed run out there that ultimately proved the difference in an epic contest. Having learnt from those experiences, Domingo wants to stress that his team should not suddenly change their game plans and tactics purely because of the magnitude of the occasion.
“You can’t get too fancy, you can’t get too funky. There is no magic wand to wave. The sides that do the basics really well in high-pressure games, they usually come out on top,” he explained. “You have to keep it simple. I can’t hit my players if they bowl a no-ball, or slap them on the wrist. If you make a mistake, the last thing a player wants to hear is, Why did you bowl that? Encouraging them and working on their thought processes is the key. If your thoughts are clear you have got a better chance of executing your plan.”
But what about that invisible but ultimately all encompassing element called pressure? It has been known to consume South African teams of the past, specifically at big events, but under Domingo there have been signs of improvement in terms of managing the weight of expectation. Prior to the Australian series defeat, the Proteas won successive T20 series against Bangladesh, India and England. Last year they also won their first-ever knockout match when a JP Duminy hat-trick propelled the team to a victory over Sri Lanka in the 50-overs World Cup quarter-final.
“We’ve got a chance. We are one of the most consistent sides in this format. We can go there very confident,” Domingo said. “We have prepared very well. We have some of the best players in the world. We’ve got a seriously good side. We’ll be there and thereabouts.
“We are all pretty chilled. I don’t think there is a weight of expectation around our team or any of the teams because of the nature of the competition,” he said.
Domingo is certainly spot on in terms of the competition’s structure. Besides the qualifying team which is most likely going to be Zimbabwe, South Africa are the only team has to lift the World T20 title. The Proteas opening opposition, England, were crowned champions in the Caribbean back in 2010 when the currently exiled Kevin Pietersen led the charge, while the power-packed West Indians reclaimed former glories in Colombo 2012.
If that is not a daunting enough task, the current defending champions Sri Lanka await the Proteas in the final Group 1 match in Delhi on March 28.
With such a daunting schedule awaiting the Proteas, Domingo will need all his players in prime form when the competition gets underway. - The Star