Ashleigh van Wyk and Mieke van Voorst were honoured to be part of the SA U19 women’s team in the T20 series against their provincial side, Eastern Storm, and Namibia to prepare for the second edition of the ICC U19 Women’s World Cup early next year.
The cricketers explained they are confident of making coach Dinesha Devnarain’s final side that will do battle for the country when the tournament starts in Malaysia and Thailand in January.
They were part of the 18-player squad selected by Devnarain to ramp up their preparation for the global showpiece. Devnarain’s team also included five players from the squad that played in the inaugural tournament, which started at Willowmoore Park, last year.
They played in 10 matches against Eastern Storm and Namibia at Willowmoore Park from June 30 to July 7.
Van Zyl, from Alberton, believes she’s done enough to impress Devnarain and her technical team and is confident of making the final cut that will travel to Southeast Asia.
“Playing in the green and gold is a dream come true. All my hard work is paying off. I’m not trying to be overconfident but I’ve worked hard. I hope to be in the final squad,” she said.
The 16-year-old right-hander explained she’s gained more experience under Devnarain’s watchful eye and this has helped improve certain aspects of her game, which she will continue working on when she re-joins her provincial side.
“The little girl in me that started playing cricket years ago is happy. It’s a dream come true. I’ve gained more experience and learnt to push myself to my limits. I’ve achieved my dream and going forward, I hope to play for the Proteas women’s team.”
Van Voorst, from Kempton Park, was honoured to be a part of the camp and thanked Devnarain and her team for giving her an opportunity.
She was the youngest player in the squad. She said the biggest lessons for her were to work hard and always stay in the present moment on the pitch.
“It’s a dream come true. That’s been the end goal since I was little. It’s a massive honour because I’ve worked hard for it,” she said.
The Höerskool Kempton Park learner said working with Devnarain was a blessing and this has elevated her game, adding she hopes to be in the final world cup squad.
“Not to sound overconfident, I do see myself in the team. I’ve put in the hard work and we’ve worked well together with coach Dinesha, trying to focus on specific training to help me improve.”
SA won five of their seven matches including close a encounter against Namibia in the opening fixture, which they clinched by two runs.
They won all their matches against Eastern Storm and beat the visiting Namibians once in their four matches.
Also Read: Women’s World Cup: SA win to advance to knockouts
Also Read: SA women beat Namibia at Willowmoore Park
