The 2022 edition of the Women’s World Cup is scheduled to begin on 4th March 2022. Being held in New Zealand for the third time, the marquee event in the women’s calendar will consist of 31 matches culminating in the finals on April 3rd at Christchurch.
Main squad -
Sune Luus (captain), Lizelle Lee, Shabnim Ismail, Chloe Tryon (vice-captain), Marizanne Kapp, Sinalo Jafta, Ayabonga Khaka, Masabata Klaas, Tazmin Brits, Lara Goodall, Mignon du Preez, Trisha Chetty, Laura Wolvaardt, Nonkululeko Mlaba, Tumi Sekhukhune.
Strengths:
High on confidence
South Africa has always been a strong contender for any global tournament. The 2017 edition was only the second time they had featured in the knockout stage in 6 attempts. They have been strong since 2020 beating New Zealand in an ODI series in New Zealand. That same year, they progressed to the semi-finals of the Women’s World T20 in Australia for only the second time. Due to the pandemic, they could not play another series for the whole of 2020. However, since the start of 2021, they have been in the form of their lives having won 13 out of their last 17 ODIs, with a success rate of 76%. They have lost only one game during that period with 2 games tied and 1 washed out. They managed to beat Pakistan 3-0 at home, before winning away series against teams like India (4-1) and West Indies (4-0) before beating the West Indies again at home (2-0). They will be high on confidence out of those wins and will look forward to carrying them through the World Cup.
Experienced squad
South Africa have a very experienced squad going into the competition. There are already 4 members in the squad who have played more than 100 ODIs – Mignon du Preez, Trisha Chetty, Marizanne Kapp and Shabnim Ismail. There are 2 other players who are on the cusp of 100 ODIs each, with the captain Sune Luus having played 92 games while Lizelle Lee has played 93 ODIs. Chloe Tryon has also played in 83 ODIs. With as many as 7 players out of their main squad of 15 having an experience of over 80 ODIs each, South Africa have a squad that is rich in experience and have faced in different match situations over the years which will be quite useful for a tournament like this. As many as 9 members of their squad featured in their last World Cup match in England.
Good batting and bowling attack
One of the major traits of the South African team that has got them success in the recent past is that they have an equally strong batting and bowling line-up. Their batting group has an explosive opener in Lizelle Lee who will be ably supported by Laura Wolvaardt. Their middle order comprises the likes of Sune Luus, Marizanne Kapp, Mignon du Preez, and Chloe Tryon, who are also capable of going big towards the end of the innings. Lara Goodall is also an excellent player at the top. Shabnim Ismail leads the bowling attack and is fast and accurate, known to provide important wickets. She will be supported by Masabata Klaas and Ayabonga Khaka. Chloe Tryon and Sune Luus are excellent spinners who will share the responsibilities with the youngster Nonkululeko Mlaba. Marizanne Kapp is another good bowler who has been quite successful for her country.
Weakness:
Absence of Dane van Niekerk
Despite their strong and balanced attack and their recent successes, the South Africans will miss the presence of their regular skipper, Dane van Niekerk, who is out of the tournament due to an ankle injury. She has been very instrumental in the rise of South African cricket.
Threats:
The knockout games
South Africa’s only threat is their poor history of the knockout games. They are consistent and are one of the teams with a very strong chance of progressing to the knockouts. However, as they have done in the past, they tend to fail in the knockouts, where they just don’t get over the line against the big teams in high-pressure situations. They had failed in progressing to the finals of both the previous 50-over World Cup in England and the World T20 in Australia. Can they be third-time lucky and break their jinx in New Zealand? Only time will tell.
