Boucher: No one can live with us

The Titans go into their RamSlam T20 Challenge semifinal against the Warriors in Centurion today with some of the country’s best cricketers to choose from, so it is little wonder that coach Mark Boucher is confident enough to say that if they play to their potential then no team can beat them.

The omission of Dale Steyn from the Titans squad says it all in terms of the depth available to Boucher, and he is likely to field a side with nine Proteas in it, while the Warriors have just three internationals in their squad.

“If we rock up and play to 100% of our ability then, on paper, no team should be able to compete with us. We’re going to cover all the angles in our selection, have seven batsmen including a couple of very good hitters, and our bowling will have plenty of pace, a couple of spinners, and bowlers who can do the change-ups,” Boucher said at Centurion yesterday.

Boucher was also confident that his team’s losses in Durban, for which his selection has been heavily criticised, and in Cape Town, have certainly not derailed his team in any way.

“The results weren’t ideal but they don’t worry me at all. If we had played our full-strength team and won both matches then people would say we’re due a loss in the semifinals. So we’ve had our bad games, we know where we struggled and we have guys back in the team who are used to playing big games and who have won lots of trophies.

“We’ve trained very hard and the guys are mentally fresh, having not had to contend with the weather in Durban and all the travel-play that was scheduled for last weekend. We believe we’ve got the firepower, both in terms of batting and bowling, to take care of the Warriors. We believe if we execute our plans properly we will come through. It’s about rolling with the punches and being smart,” Boucher said.