Proteas Women’s all-rounder Marizanne Kapp feels she is not hitting her straps yet, but that is exactly what warm-up games are for ahead of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup.
This assessment may be a scary prospect for the opposition, considering the veteran has already been among the runs and wickets — including a four-wicket haul against Ireland over the weekend— in the two warm-up matches played thus far.
“I don’t have rhythm yet, to be honest, so it’s not feeling great at the moment,” Kapp said after the 15-run victory over the Irish at Loughborough.
“Luckily, we still have time to work on that. Obviously, the weather is also a bit windy; I’m not used to this in England.
“So it’s been a bit of a struggle, not feeling great at the moment. But look, it’ll take some time, and hopefully, I’ll get there by the time we start the first game.”
The Proteas beat Australia in their first warm-up match before defeating Ireland. A second match against the Aussies was washed out, but they do have a final warm-up game against New Zealand on Tuesday.
Kapp is not too focused on the results at this stage. Instead, she wants the team to gradually improve in various facets of the game ahead of their tournament opener against Australia at Old Trafford in Manchester on Saturday.
“I think it’s just about playing positively and working on the things you want to work on, but still trying to dominate,” Kapp said.
“Like I said, working on the things that you as an individual want to work on, but in doing that, also playing positive cricket. I feel like we probably did that in the first half of the game with the bat, and then we kind of just lost our way.
“Even with the bowling, it’s just about giving everyone a bowl so you can work on what you feel is needed.”
Kapp is also hoping the pitches will get quicker when they move to the Test grounds for the tournament proper.
“We’ve played on a couple of different wickets now. It’s been kind of slow, and especially facing Ireland, it was extremely slow,” she noted.
“I don’t think you can look too much into that, because we know we’re going to play at the big stadiums. The wickets are a bit different—bigger squares, bigger outfields as well—and hopefully, the weather improves. I think it’s still just about focusing on the basics.”
