JOHANNESBURG – Shaun Pollock, the former South Africa captain, has put his weight behind Faf du Plessis and his men to do well in the Cricket World Cup later this year.
The tournament will be held in England and Wales from May 30 to July 14.
“There is no reason why South Africa can't win it,” he said. “There are some strong teams around. We thought we had the formula before, but it didn't work out. There's no reason why this team can't come up with the right strategy and perform at the right time and bring home the silverware.”
Pollock, 45, said South Africa's best stint at the World Cup came in 1999, when they faced Australia in the semifinal. The fixture ended in a tie, but Australia qualified for the final, having beaten the same opposition in the Super Six stage.
Shaun Pollock in his role as an analyst for Supersport. Photo: Chris Ricco/BackpagePix
“Going to the World Cup with South Africa was always special. We always had that team that had the potential to go all the way. It wasn't like we were ever just making up the numbers,” he said.
“99 was probably the best performance we put in. Unfortunately, the tie in the semifinal meant we were knocked out.
“The World Cup is like the Olympics of cricket. It’s somewhere that you get to test yourself against the best in that one or two month period and see if you can come out on top.”