South African skipper Temba Bavuma and his teammates gave a sneak-peak of what happens in the preparations for the T20 World Cup. They had a light-hearted discussion about what goes on and off the field.
Temba Bavuma explained how the past South African legends, especially Hasim Amla have inspired him to up his game. He said that he is heavily influenced by Amla and hence draws a lot of inspiration from him while practicing. Before Proteas’ opener against Australia, he told Betway that he does find similarities between him and Amla. It is because both of them were not considered to be the classic T20 players but they remodeled their game.
He said that playing with these experienced people has helped him a lot. While he likes and draws inspiration from Amla, and practices like him, his teammates do follow the styles of other experienced South African players.
Rassie van der Dussen has discussed the importance of switching off while he is not practicing. It helps to gain focus and give 100% during the practice session. Switching off mentally while not in the game is essential so that one does not get nervous or panicked in the field.
He also added that in between the series he loves to binge-watch different shows on Netflix, as the bio-secured bubbles have limited the options for relaxation and entertainment.
Being active while staying in the hotel room in between the practices gets tough. So he has fitness toys that help him to stay active on idle days.
While Dussen loves binge-watching classics like Friends, left-arm spinner Keshav Maharaj has found other ways to keep himself busy throughout the day. He says that he is obsessed with cleanliness and thus he spends his free time cleaning around. He says that staying in the bio bubble all alone can get a little overwhelming and hence he does whatever he can to make himself at home. Being a clean and tidy person, he is scared of dirty rooms and scruffy sheets. It drives him mad and as no cleaners are allowed into his room, he spends time making himself comfortable by keeping a check on the cleanliness of the room.
South Africa has adapted quite well in terms of cricketing challenges in the tough times of COVID 19. They have beaten the West Indies and Sri Lanka in a pair of test series and also have competed quite well against the Pakistani cricket team. While they have not won any ODI series since the start of 2020, they have bounced back in the other forms of the game. They have even defeated the defending world champions West Indies 3-2 in the Caribbean.
Rassie van der Dussen added that this has been a great year for them. They have learned a lot and have also improved their skills. A year back, they were quite inexperienced, but at the moment they are quite in a good place.