Warriors can do it – Richards
CRICKET legend Barry Richards says if the Warriors keep cool heads and get Titans batting star AB de Villliers out early they will have a real chance of winning Friday’s Momentum Cup final at Centurion Park.
Richards, rated as one of cricket’s all-time greats and Sir Donald Bradman’s favourite opening batsman, said the Warriors had already shown in preliminary games that they have the ability to come back from the dead.
“AB is obviously the factor for the Warriors and if they can get him early it will give them a lot of confidence,” he said.
Richards, who once hit 325 not out in a day, was universally rated as the best batsman in the world in the early 1970s.
“The key is the bowling. The Warriors have to make sure they limit the Titans and then give themselves a reasonable target to chase or alternatively set a reasonable target so they can put the Titans under pressure,” he said.
“Then when AB comes to the crease, and if they get him out for under 20, I think they have a real chance of winning.
“The Warriors have played good white-ball cricket throughout the summer and they will have confidence. Their red-ball cricket has not been as good as they would have liked, but in the white-ball game they are a force.
“If the Warriors play as a team, field well and bowl with discipline and also think the game through, they can win.
“There will be passages in the final where it is up for grabs. You have to recognise that and then you must make sure you grab that initiative and from there you can win the game.”
Richards said focus would be key in the final which is expected to draw a capacity crowd to Centurion Park.
“The Warriors batsmen seem to be playing pretty well, but the key is the bowling. They must focus on what they are doing,” he said.
“You have to keep a keep a cool head and say this is our policy. If you get a little bit behind on the run rate you must make sure you don’t play a rash shot.
“Because if you get out and then the next guy gets out and you lose two wickets in no time at all, then you are really under pressure.”
Richards said Centurion had always been a good batting wicket for one-day cricket.
“Scoreboard pressure, if you are chasing, is always a problem. You tend to look up at the scoreboard all the time and see there is a good score. So they must keep cool heads out there,” he said.
The Warriors qualified for the final by beating the Knights by 18 runs in Bloemfontein on Monday.