Johannesburg — Mark Boucher described the mood in the South African camp as ‘Okay’ following their 2-1 defeat in a One-Day series to a second-string Indian team on Tuesday.
South Africa was bowled out for just 99 in 27.1 overs as India surged to a seven wicket victory in Delhi. The series defeat pushed the Proteas even further away from an automatic qualifying spot for next year’s 50-over World Cup, while some scarring is likely to remain ahead of the T20 tournament in Australia. South Africa plays their first match in that competition on October 24.
“I think we are Okay at the moment. It is disappointing to lose, but we’ve got a massive competition around the corner, which is what we are really gearing ourselves up to,” said Boucher.
The series was his last bilateral one as the Proteas head coach. He will depart that position at the end of the T20 World Cup, to take over as coach of the Mumbai Indians side in the Indian Premier League.
Boucher, who was appointed the national men’s side coach in December 2019, cited fatigue as being a crucial factor behind the inconsistent performances produced by the Proteas in India. Across six matches - three T20 Internationals and three ODIs - the South Africans won twice, with the batting, in particular, lurching between sublime and ridiculous.
“You can’t expect the players - especially with the schedule we’ve had - to be up for every single game. That is where you have to rely on your technical and mental side to pull you through,” said Boucher. “We’ve been a little bit weak in both those departments. Today especially I thought there were soft dismissals up front and then one or two technical things on a wicket that was quite uneven in its turn - one turned, one didn’t - and we were found out there. I allude back to keeping the players fresh so that the mental part of their game is right up there along with the technical side. I think then we can get the best results from these players.”
He mentioned how most of the players had very little time to rest after the tour to England, while some had come to India straight from the Caribbean Premier League. “It took us some time to get used to conditions (in India), we didn’t arrive early enough.”
Boucher explained that the inconsistency in the team’s performances in the 50 overs format, which has seen them lose 10 of their last 22 ODIs, was not ideal, but that they needed to front up for their remaining five matches in the ICC Super League competition. Those will be against England and the Netherlands next year, but with the series against the current world cup holders coinciding with the SA20 competition, the Proteas are likely to field a weakened outfit for those three matches.
“The reason we are in this situation is that we haven’t always had continuity within our One-Day team, and there’s been various reasons for that; players coming to IPL, and Covid, that has played its part,” he explained.
“There has been inconsistency with regards to our One-Day team, and we are seeing that now. We know what is required and will know what is required come January against England and then the Netherlands. We have to win those games. And if we don’t then we have to accept the fact that we have to go and qualify for the next World Cup. We understand the situation we are in and will just have to man up and face that when it comes our way.”
IOL Sport