Shabnim Ismail backs South Africa to adjust to slower wickets in West Indies

won The Hundred competition with Oval Invincibles alongside her skipper Dane van Niekerk and fellow pacer Marizanne Kapp when South Africa take on West Indies in the first T20I at the Sir Viv Richards Cricket Ground in Antigua on Tuesday (August 31).

The 32-year-old pacer feels South Africa’s preparation has been great with a good session in the middle and expressed confidence that they will be able to start the series on a winning note and use that the momentum through the series.

“The preparations have gone really well for us, especially since our arrival here in Antigua,” Ismail said speaking ahead of the match. “Yesterday we had a good middle session that gave us an indication as to how the pitches here will play and we came through that test well. Hopefully we can come into the T20 series and start well. It is always our goal as a team that we start on a good note because it is a short series, and we can get some confidence going into the ODI series that follows.”

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Ismail, who won the Cricketer of the Year award at CSA awards, has been a key figure in South Africa’s twin series wins this year as they defeated Pakistan at home and India away in both the shorter formats. Having had a look at the pitch, she feels the wickets are going to be slower and bowler will be instrumental in the shortest format.

South Africa batters had a tough time when they visited West Indies in 2018 and continued their struggle during the T20 World Cup the same year as they crashed out in the first round. However, Ismail believes batters have done well in recent times to adjust to slower wickets in international cricket and will continue to do so in the Caribbean.

“I saw the pitch yesterday and it looks like a good wicket that will offer a lot for our bowlers if we get our lengths right. Bowlers always have a role to play in T20 cricket and hopefully we can capitalize on that. Our batters have done well lately and I definitely see them adjusting well to these slow wickets we are expecting." she added.