By finishing top of Group B, South Africa have set up a quarter-final clash with the fourth-placed team in Group A: New Zealand, a team who came into the World Cup having lost 11 out of the 12 games they had played in the subcontinent over the last year. South Africa, however, are not paying too much attention to who their opposition is, according to their allrounder Faf du Plessis.
"We specifically said we don't want to focus on who we are playing and have our minds distracted by our opposition," du Plessis said at the team hotel in Dhaka. "If we prepare well and we are ready for the game and we play to our full ability, we are confident that we will win the quarter-final."
After winning five out of their six group-stage matches, South Africa have earned recognition as one of the strongest sides in the tournament, perhaps even the favourites now, a tag they did not have coming in to the competition. They've approached each game as an individual entity, not a stepping stone, or a rung on a ladder, but as unit on its own. Even though they have now reached the do-or-die stage of the tournament, du Plessis said their approach won't change.
"My experience of knockouts is not to do anything different. That will take all the pressure off. When you do the opposite and it gets more tense and there is more pressure, you don't play to your full potential."
South Africa have played as a unit, with wickets spread among the seamers and the spinners, and runs coming from everyone in the line-up. It has meant that, on a day when one doesn't perform, they are safe in knowing someone else will. du Plessis said the win against India played an important part in the team reaching this point. "The win against India gave us a lot of confidence because everyone chipped in."
It also served as a morale booster, after a demoralising loss to England in Chennai where the batting collapsed and South Africa were accused of crumbling under pressure. "We should have won the game against England," du Plessis said. "But it gave us a sense of what to do when we are in that situation again."
Some called it getting the choke over and done with early, and while du Plessis didn't say so in so many words, he indicated that the team had learnt their lesson from that outing. It also allowed them to focus on moving forward and remaining positive.
"If you think about making mistakes, you're not going to play your best game. Even when we were in tough situations, guys played with freedom and got us out of the hole," he said, perhaps referring to the chase against India or the way the batting came back from being 117 for 5 against Ireland.
South Africa put in a complete performance against Bangladesh, both with bat and ball and beat them by 206 runs in Mirpur. They will play New Zealand at the same venue, and du Plessis thinks the experience on the pitch at the Shere Bangla National Stadium will serve them in good stead.
The pitch is a typical subcontinent wicket, although it doesn't look that way. du Plessis admitted that the team were surprised by the colour of the surface. "I haven't played on a wicket that looks charcoalish. It gets a bit slower the later you bat." du Plessis doesn't expect the toss to play a big role in the match, even though it is a day/night game.
The conditions won't be a concern because South Africa have played in them before, and the opposition is not an issue, because, as du Plessis reiterated, South Africa refuse to make them one. "We've seen them play a lot of cricket on television. They are a dangerous side, similar to West Indies in that they've got match winners as well. But we are not too worried about that."
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