‘Our fielding needs a lot of work': Proteas wicketkeeper Sinalo Jafta
Jafta believes the SA women's team need to be more aggressive in their approach.
They are confident of hitting back against hosts Sri Lanka, but Proteas wicketkeeper/batter Sinalo Jafta admits the SA team need to be more accurate in the field if they hope to secure a consolation victory in their last match of the women's ODI tri-series in Colombo on Friday (6.30am start).
Jafta missed the first two games of the series, after making way for 17-year-old keeper Karabo Meso, but she did turn out in their third straight defeat of the two-week campaign against India on Wednesday.
And while the Proteas women needed to tighten their lines with the ball, and they had struggled to build big partnerships with the bat, Jafta said they also needed to be cleaner and more confident in terms of their fielding.
'It's a no-brainer. Our fielding needs a lot of work. But at the end of the day for me it's all about the attitude you have when you go in there,' Jafta said.
'If the first thing you're thinking is 'I'm probably going to miss this' then you probably are, and I think we should just come with that aggressive approach.
'This series has been one where you can be like 'what is going on?' because I haven't seen us put out such performances on the field… and from my perspective we need to treat it like any other skill.
'Like how you bat and bowl, fielding also needs to be up there if you want to win games.'
'We can get the job done'
Despite losing three games thus far in the tri-series, and missing out on a spot in the final to be contested between Sri Lanka and India on Sunday, Jafta said the Proteas were pumped to hit back against the hosts on Friday.
'I've always believed it's all about the journey. Obviously we're going to go out there and give it everything we have,' she said.
'The coach (Mandla Mashimbyi) is always like 'I don't really care about the win' but he believes if everyone does their job 100% the result tends to take care of itself.
'So for us I think it's about ending off on a high… but I'm not really worried because I know we're a team that reflects a lot. We believe in our talent and the change room believes we can get the job done.'
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
eNCA
2 hours ago
- eNCA
Proteas seek end to trophy misery in WTC final against Australia
JOHANNESBURG - South Africa captain Temba Bavuma believes his team can put their shocking record in knockout games behind them when they face defending champions Australia in next week's World Test Championship final. The Proteas have won just one International Cricket Council trophy –- the ICC Knockout -- a forerunner of the Champions Trophy, back in 1998, alongside a list of agonising near-misses. By contrast, the top-ranked Australians, who beat India in the 2023 WTC final, have an enviable record at the sharp end of tournaments in the white-ball game. They have won the one-day World Cup a record six times, lifted the Champions Trophy twice and have also triumphed at the T20 World Cup. "It is different," Bavuma said ahead of the WTC final at Lord's starting on Wednesday. "Australia have had success. They know what they need to do." But the 35-year-old batsman is adamant South Africa will not be overawed when facing Pat Cummins' team. "For us it is about being confident in our ability," said Bavuma. "We haven't been handed this opportunity to play in the final, we have performed accordingly. We respect them (Australia) but it is still a 50-50 chance in our eyes." Heartache has been the recurring theme of South Africa's history at global events going back to the 1992 World Cup, when they returned to the international fold after two decades of exclusion as a result of the country's apartheid regime. South Africa reached the semi-finals only for a cruel rain rule, that left them needing 21 off one ball, to wreck their chances against England in Sydney. That set a pattern for the next three ODI World Cups. South Africa dominated their group stage in Pakistan in 1996 before falling to a Brian Lara-inspired West Indies in the quarter-finals. A farcical run-out with the scores tied in a 1999 semi-final against Australia meant they were eliminated on net run-rate. On home soil in 2003, rain and a miscalculation of the run-rate formula against Sri Lanka led to an embarrassing group-stage exit. Not until last year's T20 World Cup did South Africa reach a major final. Fast bowler Kagiso Rabada is the only current player who would be a contender for a place in a South Africa all-time team. But Bavuma has an impressive record of eight wins and a draw in the nine Tests in which he has captained. The skipper lauded coach Shukri Conrad for helping create a strong team spirit, saying: "We don't boast legendary names. For us to achieve what we have is a tribute to him." Conrad has spent time with Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus in a bid to sharpen his side's winning edge. Erasmus has guided South Africa to back-to-back Rugby World Cup titles, with the Springboks showing extraordinary mental strength in winning three successive knockout matches by a single point on the way to their 2023 triumph in Paris. "Obviously they are doing a lot of things right," said Conrad, who was clear about the key lesson he had learned from Erasmus. "Playing for the Springboks has got to be the biggest thing -- playing for the Proteas has got to be the biggest thing for our players," he explained. "That is what we have to hone in on."
IOL News
6 hours ago
- IOL News
Heinrich Klaasen opens up on international retirement: ‘I wasn't enjoying it anymore'
'I wasn't enjoying it' Former Proteas wicketkeeper Heinrich Klaasen has spoken about his decision to retire from international cricket. Photo: Marco Longari/AFP Image: Marco Longari/AFP Proteas' white-ball wicketkeeper Heinrich Klaasen dropped a bombshell last week when he announced his retirement from international cricket. A report in Afrikaans newspaper Rapport has revealed that Heinrich's original plan was to play on until the 2027 Cricket World Cup right here in South Africa, but he decided to call it quits after white-ball head coach Rob Walter resigned. Speaking to the publication, Klaasen said he hadn't been enjoying his cricket for a while and had a long conversation with Walter to discuss where he was at. 'I had a long conversation with [former Proteas coach] Rob Walter before the Champions Trophy and I told him I didn't feel good in my heart about what was happening; I wasn't enjoying it as much... We talked nicely, we planned everything – well up until the World Cup tournament in 2027,' the 33-year-old said, according to the publication. Get your news on the go, click here to join the IOL News WhatsApp channel. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ Klaasen and Walter agreed on a plan that would allow him to play in the SA20, IPL, MLC, and The Hundred while continuing with the Proteas. However, Cricket South Africa was not happy that he would miss the tour to Australia in August. When Walter resigned and his negotiations with Cricket South Africa collapsed, Heinrich said that made the decision to retire from international cricket an easier one. 'It is a sad day for me as I announce that I have decided to step away from international cricket. It took me a long time to decide what's best for me and my family for the future. It was truly a very difficult decision, but also one that I have absolute peace with,' Klaasen said on social media last week when announcing his decision. 'From the first day, it was the biggest privilege representing my country and it was everything that I have worked for and dreamed about as a young boy.' According to CSA's head of national teams Enoch Nkwe, the mother body and Klaasen sat down to try and find a solution, but they could not meet in the middle in their negotiations. 'We had a contract on the table. With such negotiations, it's always back and forth to try to reach a place where both parties are satisfied. We tried to find each other, but unfortunately, it didn't happen,' Nkwe said. Klaasen also stated that his decision to retire was taken before Shukri Conrad's appointment as the Proteas' coach for all formats, insisting the two had a 'very good relationship.' IOL Sport
The South African
7 hours ago
- The South African
What time is kick off for the Bulls' URC final?
The Bulls will now travel to Ireland where they will line up against Leinster in the URC Grand Final next Saturday, 14 June, after the two top-ranked teams defeated the Sharks and Glasgow Warriors respectively in a gripping semi-final round on Saturday. The spectacle – the Bulls' third appearance in the final in four seasons – will play out at Croke Park in what will mark Leinster's first final since the 2020/21 season, with the match kicking off at 18:00 (SA time). The Bulls showed nerves of steel in a nail-biting SA derby against the Sharks to register a 25-13 victory at Loftus Versfeld, despite receiving three yellow cards in the first half. The battle in Pretoria, in front of a near capacity crowd of 47,214 fans, was epic as both sides threw everything at one another, although the main difference between the teams was the Bulls' ability to convert most of their chances into points, while their defence was also very good. In stark contrast, the Sharks were again their own worst enemies as they botched several point-scoring chances close to the tryline, conceded penalties at crucial times, and missed four out of their five kicks at goal. Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 0211. Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X and Bluesky for the latest news.
