Proteas fans expect ‘Pink ODI’ blitz
HAVING scored two hundreds in the previous four Pink ODI’s‚ including the blistering 31-ball world record 100 against the West Indies two years ago‚ Proteas ODI captain AB de Villiers knows the onus will be on him to entertain an expected capacity crowd at the Wanderers today.
Such has been the efficiency of the ODI side‚ De Villiers has been allowed to readjust while the senior players have taken turns in stepping up to the plate.
Hashim Amla guided what could have been a tricky chase in Port Elizabeth last week while Test captain Faf du Plessis and the now injured David Miller conjured up contrasting centuries en-route to a crushing win.
Big runs from him in today’s third ODI against Sri Lanka will not only seal the series but continue the Proteas growing trend of being a ruthless outfit.
“I do enjoy the big crowds and the big moments but I think it comes down to form at the specific time. I’ve been in good form in the past Pink ODI’s and I love playing at the Bullring. Once a guy gets going and the crowd gets very loud‚ it also gets me going and it’s always great to play here. Hopefully the foundation will be laid and we’ll have a bit of fun‚” De Villiers said.
“There’s three games to go so we don’t want to look to far ahead. If we want to win big tournaments‚ you know you have to win five or six games on the bounce and you’ve got to get that habit going of winning series by way of 4-1 or 5-0 instead of 3-2‚ which we’ve done in the past.
“That kind of scoreline is not good enough anymore. It’ll be nice to build on the 5-0 dream come tomorrow.”
De Villiers confirmed Farhaan Behardien will replace Miller‚ who injured his finger during Wednesday’s 120-run win at Kingsmead. While the focus is still on rolling the hapless visitors‚ there’s also the goal of having a significant ICC Champions Trophy run in June.
De Villiers has been part of many unsuccessful ICC trophy conquests and this is something he hopes can change. Knowing full well a platform is necessary before the construction of a house‚ De Villiers said they hoped they are on the right track.
“There are a few boxes that have been ticked‚ one of them being the 5-0 whitewash of Australia because that’s something that has never been achieved. We’ve been winning some games of cricket and we’ve been playing some good cricket.
“The culture and the spirit in the group has been stronger than ever. We seem to have a good feel and direction in terms of where we’re going as a team. We can just hope and believe we’re on the right track‚ which I hope we’re on. The true test will be at the Champions Trophy‚” De Villiers said.