{"id":18223,"date":"2023-10-26T16:56:04","date_gmt":"2023-10-26T16:56:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/south-africa-aiming-to-ditch-choker-tag-by-beating-pakistan\/"},"modified":"2023-10-26T16:56:04","modified_gmt":"2023-10-26T16:56:04","slug":"south-africa-aiming-to-ditch-choker-tag-by-beating-pakistan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/south-africa-aiming-to-ditch-choker-tag-by-beating-pakistan\/","title":{"rendered":"South Africa aiming to ditch ‘choker’ tag by beating Pakistan"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

South Africa have found ways to manage expectations and ditch the tag of being World Cup chokers but are aware it will be difficult to shake off if they fail as they go deeper in the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023, captain Temba Bavuma said on Thursday.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Watch ARY News live on\u00a0live.arynews.tv<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

South Africa have had a reputation for coming second-best in big moments at major tournaments to earn the \u2018choker\u2019 tag and Temba Bavuma said they are looking at ways to deal with the pressure and expectation after four wins in five games.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t think it\u2019s given us any extra motivation. We looked at ways as to how we can maybe divert our attention away, not necessarily using the \u2018chokers\u2019 tag, but how do we address and deal with the precedent expectation.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe understand that as the tournament progresses, the more we keep playing well, that\u2019s going to come to the fray. But I think we\u2019ve developed ways as to how we can divert our attention and focus on the important things. It\u2019s still early in the tournament. There\u2019s still going to be pressure situations that we\u2019re going to overcome. If we stumble, we\u2019ll probably have to deal with that tag again.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n<\/blockquote>\n

The team are well set for a semi-final spot, sitting second in the standings behind hosts India and next play Pakistan in Chennai on Friday.<\/p>\n

\u201cFive games ago, we weren\u2019t probably seen as the favourites. But now, there\u2019s a lot more positivity around the Proteas and the South African team,\u201d Temba Bavuma said.<\/p>\n

\n

Sri Lanka rise to fifth with a huge win against England!<\/p>\n

The defending champions are down in ninth \ud83d\udc40 #CWC23<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/rloLJ53nTN<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 ESPNcricinfo (@ESPNcricinfo) October 26, 2023<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

All four wins have come batting first with South Africa averaging 380 in those games, but Temba Bavuma said there is a temptation to bat second on a turning pitch in Chennai having watched Afghanistan beat Pakistan on Monday.<\/p>\n

\u201cI watched the Afghanistan game with Pakistan and it seemed to get a lot better batting under light. There\u2019s obviously us needing to consider the fact that we\u2019ve had a lot of success of late batting first. So fortunately for me, I don\u2019t have to make that decision right now,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

The South Africa captain added, \u201cBut we know somewhere along the line in the tournament we\u2019ll have to bat second. The conversations that we\u2019ve had as batters is to find ways as to how we can still follow that same process that we follow when we\u2019re batting first.\u201d<\/p>\n

Related \u2013 South Africa batters light up the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 in India<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n