South Africa is just one win away to turn it around believes left-handed batsman JP Duminy as his side gears up to compete against “big threat” India, a team packed with match-winners.
The Proteas are gasping for breath after successive defeats in the first two ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 matches.
They were thrashed by England in the tournament opener before suffering a shocking 21-run defeat against Bangladesh at the Oval on Sunday.
“I don’t think we are far away. We were 21 runs short and we can identify areas where we could have made that up whether the bat or the ball,” said Duminy after South Africa’s loss to Bangladesh.
“We are one good performance away from creating a bit of momentum.”
Faf du Plessis’ South Africa will take on Virat Kohli-led India on June 5 in their third match and Duminy reckons it to be a tough contest.
“They (India) have a got a lot of match winners. From the bowling perspective, they rely a lot on spin and obviously a guy like (Jasprit) Bumrah has been in form, particularly in the IPL. So those are the kind of threats in bowling,” Duminy said.
“Obviously one of the best batsman in the world in Virat Kohli and MS Dhoni with his experience, so they pose a big threat. But the beauty of the game and the tournament structure is that, it doesn’t matter where you are ranked or which team you are playing. It is about the performance of the day and that is the most important thing.”
Fielding is also an area where South Africa will look to improve ahead of India clash on Wednesday.
“Something we thrive on is our body language and creating a presence in the inner ring. That is something we can get better on. If you are going to win a tournament like the World Cup, you need good strong characters in the group,” Duminy said.
“We are up against it so we are going to need each and every individual to be a leader in their own game. We need to understand how we can improve. When you are playing in a tournament like this, there is always going to be external pressure but it’s about embracing that.”
