'I Have Used That Couple of Times': Temba Bavuma Says 'Chokers' Tag Will Stick Until South Africa Win a Silverware

South Africa haven’t won a World Cup till date. But what might be the reason for that?

The instances suggest that they have choked at crucial junctures. Be it against Australia or New Zealand, or Netherlands, the Proteas have come close yet remained really far.

Skipper Temba Bavuma is well aware of the history and doesn’t shy away from using the word but only to keep his troops motivated.

“I have used that a couple of times. But you don’t really hear coming from the team. I think there are guys who believe that it applies to this team, there are guys who don’t believe that it applies to this team. The belief that happens among the players is important. I bring it up to just make sure that we are not kind of squirting around the issue. If there is some issue, you will have to deal with it and mentally make sure how you are gonna deal with it.

“But again, it is just that acceptance that it will always be within the team, within the group, the guys who will have to come don’t experience that. This is something that will just exist as long as we do what we need to do,” Bavuma said during a media interaction ahead of their ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 opener against Sri Lanka in New Delhi.

South Africa are not really coming into this tournament as favourites and when asked if this just releases the extra pressure, the right-handed batter was of the opinion that it doesn’t really matter.

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“I don’t think it really helps because we have our own pressures and expectations. If you’re favourites or not, it doesn’t really matter. I think the challenge for us will always be to go out there and play our best cricket,” he said.

Bavuma also lavished praise on Heinrich Klaasen and the way he has been batting recently but also added that the aggressive batter’s success is largely due to the platform that he gets from the guys who bat up the order.

“Klaasen is walking down on water the way he is batting. He is a big player for us. He has been a part of our group for a number of years and he has truly shown why there has been so much faith in backing his ability,” Bavuma said.

“He comes in and marshals that middle-order of our batting and I guess his success is largely due to the platform that he gets from the guys who come in at the top of the order whether be Quinton (de Kock), myself or Rassie (Van der Dussen) in the top three. I think it’s important that those guys do their job so that guys like Klassen, David (Miller), Aiden (Markram) can go out and do what we expect them to do,” he explained.