Proteas Women aim to adapt better to heat for India clash in Colombo
Laura Wolvaardt and Mandla Mashimbyi Proteas Women captain Laura Wolvaardt and coach Mandla Mashimbyi at practice in Colombo. Photo: Cricket South Africa
Image: Cricket South Africa
The scorching heat in Colombo has tested the Proteas Women's team at length, and there have been a few players who have found themselves ill as a result.
The 17-year-old wicket-keeper batter Karabo Meso could not keep on Friday during the third match of the ongoing Tri-Series against hosts Sri Lanka.
Proteas all-rounder Nadine de Klerk believes that the heat has played a factor in their two consecutive losses in the series.
'It's extremely hot. I think also batting first and then having to come out and field after lunch is never easy, especially in these conditions,' said De Klerk.
'We didn't have a lot of runs on the board, so we had to put in a really big shift, and unfortunately, we couldn't get over the line.
'We know it's going to be hot, it's not going to change, so I guess it's just about taking the learning from these last two games, and see how we can get better and try to adapt to the heat, because it's not going anywhere.'
Apart from the two losses, there have been a number of milestones on tour, including De Klerk becoming only the ninth Proteas Women player to reach the 50-wicket mark in One-Day internationals.
De Klerk claimed her 50th ODI career wicket against India Women during the second ODI of the series in tough conditions at the R. Premadasa Stadium.
'You always want to contribute to the side, and as a bowler, you love taking wickets, especially if it's not coming easily,' said De Klerk.
'I think in these conditions, wickets are really hard to come by. It's been a great journey so far, and hopefully it just keeps getting better from here on.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
TimesLIVE
an hour ago
- TimesLIVE
Perfect Cummins flattens Proteas
Kagiso Rabada picked up two wickets minutes before lunch to keep South Africa's hopes aflicker after a devastating spell from Australian captain Pat Cummins put his side in the ascendancy on the second day of the World Test Championship final. As he did in the first innings, the spearhead of the Proteas attack dismissed Usman Khawaja and Cameron Green in one over to put smiles on his teammates' faces. Australia went to tea on 32/2, a lead of 106 runs, with Marnus Labuschage on 16 and Steve Smith on 4. South Africa will need a lot more magic in the final session on Thursday if they are to narrow the gap to the Australians, for whom Cummins was magnificent as the spearhead of the effort that saw the Proteas bowled out for a miserable 138. The mission will be different for South Africa and Australia after the tea break 🇿🇦🇦🇺 📺 Stream #WTC25 on DStv: — SuperSport 🏆 (@SuperSportTV) June 12, 2025 He was like a pin that poked the Proteas' lunchtime balloon. The South Africans had felt good about themselves at the interval after scoring 78 runs in the first session and showing greater intent with the bat than they had on the first evening. Two elegant boundaries from David Bedingham in the final over put smiles on faces, but Cummins turned those to frowns with his burst after the break. It was the former Australian rugby captain John Eales who was given the moniker 'Nobody' because 'nobody's perfect', and it would have served as an appropriate nickname for Cummins too. He didn't make a mistake with the ball on Thursday, overwhelming the Proteas, to give his side what looks like a match-winning advantage. The cocaine, the suspension are in the past — this, the cricket, is what Rabada knows 'Hopefully we can score some runs,' Proteas ace says after gutting Australia but being let down by top order. Sport 12 hours ago Cummins trapped Kyle Verreynne lbw for 13, a decision that had to be sent to the TV official, after Chris Gaffney — who's been having a running battle with DRS in this match — kept his hands by his side. The Australian captain had the wherewithal to go to the third umpire even though he was smashed in the back by Verreynne who was trying to pick up a single. But nothing the South Africans did could keep Cummins down. Marco Jansen lasted three balls and chipped a delivery straight back to the bowler, while Bedingham, who top scored with 45, was the victim of a gem of delivery that was angled into him and then straightened off the surface, the ball glancing the edge of his bat giving Alex Carey a simple catch. That gave Cummins five for the innings, and his sixth wicket, saw him become the eighth Australian to pick up 300 Test wickets. 'It's way more than I could have asked for,' Cummins told the TV broadcaster. '300 is a big number for any fast bowler, it means you've come through a few things.' His post-lunch spell read 4.1—1-4-4 and saw him finish with 6/28, the kind of performance that, coupled with his display in the 50-over World Cup final against India two years ago, will only strengthen the argument that he belongs among the greats of the game in his own country.
IOL News
3 hours ago
- IOL News
Maybe Proteas Women lost it a bit in the middle in West Indies loss, says Tazmin Brits despite half-century
Tazmin Brits scored a half-century for the Proteas Women against the West Indies. Photo: BackpagePix Image: BackpagePix Proteas Women opening batter Tazmin Brits was disappointed with her team's performance against the West Indies in Barbados on Wednesday, despite putting up a decent half-century. Brits, who opened the batting for the Proteas with captain Laura Wolvaardt, got the team off to a positive start during the first 10 overs of the game. The pair pushed toward their 50-run partnership, which came in the 11th over, but Wolvaardt lost her wicket cheaply shortly after with a run out. From there on, the Proteas batting line-up were shaky, and looked far off from the team that put over 300 runs on the board a couple months ago against Sri Lanka and India. The Proteas ended up losing Wednesday's game by four wickets via the DLS method. One of the major changes to their batting line-up was Mandla Mashimbyi's choice to move Annerie Dercksen up to No 5. Dercksen hasn't really found her place yet, as she was brought in at No 7 against Sri Lanka during their last ODI. The big-hitting batter fell for just four runs in the middle-order. 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 ✕ Ad loading An innings of pure brilliance from Tazmin Brits, showcasing courage and class. A truly phenomenal effort with the bat. 🔥🏏👏#AlwaysRising #WozaNawe — Proteas Women (@ProteasWomenCSA) June 11, 2025 The Proteas failed to take the momentum they built in their final game of the Tri-Series into this match against the Windies. West Indies, on the other hand, came into the game with a low confidence level after England thrashed them 6-0 in a prior series. By that logic, the South Africans should have come into this game on a high and dominated the match from the get-go, but the West Indies had other ideas and held them to 232/9 in 50 overs. Brits said they fell short with the bat and ball, and seriously needed to learn how to start winning their first ODI of the series. The 57 off 65 deliveries etched Brits' name into Proteas Women history, as she became the second fastest to reach 1,000 runs in the ODI format. 'We actually started well with the bat upfront. We got to like 43 or 44 runs in the powerplay, and I don't think that was too bad,' Brits said. 'I do think we maybe lost it a bit in the middle. 'In terms of bowling, I don't think we hit our line and length like we should have, and they came out guns blazing, so all credit to them. 'But we are going to have to pull up our socks. We can't keep losing the first ODI. 'We are going to have to start winning that and making a change, especially going into the World Cup. 🚨 MATCH RESULT 🚨 Heavy rain forced a reduction in overs, with the second innings cut to 34 overs and a revised target of 180 set for the West Indies Women ⛈️. The WI Women win by 4 wickets under DLS and take a 1-0 lead in this 3-match ODI series 🏏.#AlwaysRising #WozaNawe — Proteas Women (@ProteasWomenCSA) June 11, 2025 'It's always nice to hit those milestones, but it's not as great when you're on the losing end. 'I would have liked to get to a 100 and maybe contribute a bit more to the team, so we could have gotten to that 260 or 280 mark. 'I don't like going out like that... I think it's a bit of a soft dismissal. At the end of the day, I can only learn from it and next time contribute a bit more.' The Klerksdorp-born right-hander said she expected a bit more movement off the pitch, especially with the new ball and pace, but the conditions did not pan out as she thought they would.
TimesLIVE
4 hours ago
- TimesLIVE
Proteas show greater intent to narrow deficit at Lord's
Two glorious drives from David Bedingham in the final over before lunch, lifted South African spirits at the end of a gripping morning session on the second day of the World Test Championship final at Lord's. Watchful throughout the morning, Bedingham drove Beau Webster straight down the ground and then through the covers as the Proteas reached 121/5 at lunch, trailing the Australians by 91 runs. Bedingham ended the session on 39, in the company of his good pal, Kyle Verreynne, who is on 11. South Africa showed greater intent on Thursday, after getting bogged down on the first evening, when they scored 43/4 in 22 overs. Led by a stylish charge from skipper Temba Bavuma, the Proteas made the Australians think on the second morning.
