South Africa are currently on a tour to New Zealand for three ODIs and five T20Is beginning January 25. Opener Laura Wolvaardt welcomed their cricket board’s decision to go ahead with two practice matches ahead of the main matches. She also revealed that the Proteas women are all set to vie for direct qualification for the 2021 World Cup through the ODI leg of the series.
The 20-year-old who averages around 45 in ODIs mentioned that the best way to prepare for an overseas tour is to play “as many matches and have as many practice sessions as possible.”
“It has been a good decision arriving early, to be honest. We have had a good opportunity to prepare for the conditions and the best preparation you can have is by going to that particular country and playing as many matches and have as many practice sessions as possible. We have had some good net sessions here and the practice matches are crucial to help us to prepare for the ODI series accordingly. Tomorrow’s game against the Hearts will be key in helping us gauge our readiness for the ODI opener on Saturday”, she said.
She stated that the team is set to start the series with a positive mindset; focusing on the ultimate task at hand which is to gain World Cup qualification. She reiterated the facts highlighting the importance of winning their 50-over matches to secure direct qualification for the 2021 ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup through the ongoing ICC Women’s Championship.
“It (2021 World Cup qualification) is definitely at the forefront of our minds. Share on X
The White Ferns are ranked higher than us, so if we beat this team here we will gain quite a few points and It is important to keep winning games and keep boosting our rankings. With the cut-off to reaching ICC tournaments, it is important to take each game seriously due to the points system and that will start with the ODI series here in Auckland.” she said.
The ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2021 will be hosted in New Zealand from February 6 to March 7, 2021. Eight nations will compete for the top honor in 31 matches. Recently, it was announced that the matches will be hosted in 6 cities across New Zealand – Auckland, Hamilton, Wellington, Tauranga, Christchurch, and Dunedin.
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