White-ball cricket is about playing high-pressure moments well, says Prince

Ranchi: South Africa batting coach Ashwell Prince emphasised the importance of pressure on the Proteas performing at clutch moments ahead of the first ODI against India at JSCA Stadium.

Prince highlighted the performance of red-ball series but cautioned the Proteas to improve on performing in high-pressure environments.

“I think at the moment the squad has focused predominantly on Test cricket and, as far as white-ball cricket is concerned, a lot of the focus has been on T20 with the World Cup coming up soon. So in the 50-over space, we’ve been able to try different combinations. I’d say we’re doing pretty well in both batting and bowling departments. If there’s one area we could improve, it’s the bigger moments – tighter moments, clutch moments. White-ball cricket is about high-pressure environments, intensity, and playing those moments well.”

With conditions likely to favour batters in Ranchi, dew is expected to come play in the later part of the innings, team batting first will look to put big score on the board.

“Our homework tells us there’s a lot of dew expected. Teams tend to prefer chasing if they win the toss. But if you get a good pitch upfront and post a massive score, it can affect the chasing team because they feel they have to start at a high tempo and that’s when you can lose wickets. If we bat first, we’ll need to post a formidable score to apply pressure.”

India's two white-ball superstars, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma return to international cricket after the Australia tour. However, their performances did not quite match expectations on that occasion. Now, with conditions favourable and with both having a point to prove, fans are eager to see their bats do the talking once again.

“No, I wouldn’t say it’s extra pressure. As South Africans touring India, it’s always exciting. With those two names in the line-up, we expect a full house and that’s exciting. We try to focus on what damage we can cause the opposition rather than how they can hurt us. They’re world-class, they’re dangerous, but the focus is on our strengths and how we impose our game.”

“It’d be nice to carry the momentum, but there’s personnel change in both teams, so the Series will have a different feel. All formats are important on a tour like this and we’d like to keep the momentum going.” IANS

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