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Proteas spin options excite Laura Wolvaardt in T20 World Cup opener

Ongama Gcwabe|Published

‘Hopefully we’re peaking at the right time,’ Proteas Women captain Laura Wolvaardt said yesterday. Photo: EPA

IT was clearly written in the stars that Laura Wolvaardt would eventually lead the Proteas Women team to an ICC World Cup.

Eight years after her debut, the tall and long-haired stroke-maker will finally take charge of South Africa at the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup today when they take on the West Indies at the Dubai International Stadium (12pm start).

When she broke into the national team, Wolvaardt took the breath away with her classy strokes, and with her centuries, it was obvious that she was a generational talent.

Almost a decade has passed, and though she still amazes with her skills on the field, she has completely evolved as a person and a player. After all, the responsibility of being captain tends to encourage growth and maturity.

As she heads into yet another World Cup campaign, Wolvaardt has the entire team on her mind – unlike in past tournaments, where she simply focused on her batting.

With the experienced heads of former captain Suné Luus, Marizanne Kapp and Ayabonga Khaka around her, Wolvaardt has adequate support to ease the effects of the load on her shoulders.

“I have more work to do now. Back then, I could purely focus on my batting, myself and what I needed to do – whereas now, I have a bit more responsibility on the field with the captaincy. Other than that, I’m still the same,” Wolvaardt told the media yesterday.

“At the last World Cup, I remember speaking to Suné, and she said there was a lot of extra stuff that she had to do off the field – and I’ve seen it first-hand now.

“It’s been a lot this week: a lot of interviews, a lot of appearances and a lot less free time than I’m used to heading into a competition.

“But it comes with the job. It’s going to be a busy three weeks, and if I can give all my focus, then I can have some time off after that.

“It’s good to have other senior players around me as well to help, and a great coaching staff and management. I’m not alone in the meeting, so it’s good to have the support.”

Her very first role as captain was in Pakistan, where they were whitewashed 3-0 mainly due to not having a quality spin attack besides left-arm orthodox Nonkululeko Mlaba.

For this World Cup, Wolvaardt has an 18-year-old mystery spinner in Seshnie Naidu, the left-arm orthodox of Chloe Tryon, and Luus has returned from a long break from bowling.

“The spin options are good, even better than expected, with Suné’s off-spin coming out nicely. Now she’s bowling the offies instead of the leggies. I think that’s something we’ve been lacking in the past two years – an off-spinner that’s in the side regularly,” said Wolvaardt.

“So, just to have that off-spinner gives us a different dynamic if there are left-handers. It helps a bit with match-ups, because previously, we’ve just had the two left-armers – and that makes it difficult.

“Seshnie had a good run in Pakistan as well. That was a great exposure for her, so now we have quite a few spin options to choose from, which is good.”

With the much-needed boost in the spin department and the experience of playing in the final last year, Wolvaardt feels that the Proteas have a good chance of winning the elusive trophy this year.

“We are a very talented group of players. We’ve had a few ups and downs in recent times, but I’d like to think we’ve put in a lot of good hard work, and have a lot of really clear plans heading into this World Cup,” she said.

“Hopefully we’re peaking at the right time. And I think if we all play our best cricket, then we stand a really good chance.”

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