Proteas women’s captain Laura Wolvaardt revealed the squad is excited to play at the picturesque Newlands in the first of three T20Is against Ireland Women on Friday afternoon.
Following their historic ICC Women’s World Cup final in Navi Mumbai last month, Wolvaardt and Co have a completely different goal, as they host Ireland Women at home for a white-ball series that marks the start of the international summer.
The first of three T20Is between the two teams is set to get underway at 2pm at Newlands in Cape Town on Friday. The series will also mark the team’s first preparation for next year’s ICC Women’s T20 World Cup in England and Wales.
“It’s crazy that it’s so soon. It feels like we’ve just come off a World Cup, and there’s another one in, like, a few months’ time,” Wolvaardt said, on Thursday.
“I think we’ve been playing some good cricket. That final hurdle is still in front of us. I think we’re doing a lot of things right to keep making those finals.”
Wolvaardt highlighted that the team’s main focus for the series is power hitting from a batting point of view.
“Overall, I think we’ve identified fielding as something we’ve been working on, and I think it was a lot better in the World Cup,” Wolvaardt said.
“It’s been good work in progress over the last couple of years. We’re now focusing on power hitting, obviously more T20 cricket. But overall, I think the group’s been making some really good strides, and hopefully we can get ourselves into another final.”
The team has been boosted by the return of former captain Dane van Niekerk, who recently reversed her retirement decision. Wolvaardt noted Van Niekerk’s hunger to contribute and said her experience will be invaluable as the team prepares for next year’s T20 World Cup.
“(Having Dane back is) great. She’s been great so far. It looks like she just wants to contribute in any way she can,” said Wolvaardt.
“She has a lot of cricket knowledge, very smart cricketer. So, I think she has a lot to offer to the team, more than just her skills. It seems like she’s really prepared to do whatever she can for the team.
“So, I think as a captain as well, obviously, she’s done it for a lot of years. Any questions will be nice to sort of bounce off her, and it’s just nice to have her back.”
Wolvaardt, along with Proteas all-rounders Nadine de Klerk and Marizanne Kapp, recently returned from the Women’s BBL in Australia. The captain believes they are all in good form ahead of the first T20I on Friday.
“We are good. We have had two good sleeps since being here. It’s nice to be in Cape Town. I think Newlands is amazing,” she said. “
I think everyone’s up and about at training today. It’s not every day we get to play here. Everyone’s buzzed to be back in the group,” Wolvaardt concluded.
After Friday’s game, the Proteas travel to Paarl and Benoni for the second and third T20I on Sunday and Tuesday, respectively. They then begin a three ODI-series against against the same opposition, starting next week Saturday.
