Proteas must put first World Cup win behind them, says Nortje

Though they were of course pleased to get their campaign off to a positive start, fast bowler Anrich Nortje says the Proteas must put their first win behind them and focus on this weekend’s match against bogey team the Netherlands at the T20 World Cup.

Nortje returned career-best figures of 4/7, leading the SA team to a six-wicket victory over Sri Lanka with 22 balls to spare in their opening match in New York on Monday.

However, with the Netherlands up next on Saturday, also at Nassau County Stadium, Nortje said it was crucial for the squad to remain focussed on the task at hand.

The Dutch side beat the Proteas in the Super 12 stage of the T20 World Cup in Australia in 2022, and again in the group stage at the 50-over World Cup in India last year.

Another loss to the Netherlands in New York would put them under pressure in a group which also includes danger side Bangladesh.

“We’re very satisfied and very happy with our performance, but now we need to clear our thoughts and get ready for the next one again,” Nortje said.

“It’s going to be a short turnaround and we can’t really harp on too much about one game.”

Targeting playoffs

With a win over Sri Lanka under their belt, the Proteas remained the favourites on paper to finish top of Group D, and Nortje said they were focussed on securing a spot in the knockout stages later in the tournament.

But with a Super 8 stage that still needed to be negotiated before the playoffs, he admitted they still had plenty of work to do in their attempt to lift the nation’s first senior World Cup trophy.

If they worked together and stuck to their plans, however, he believed they had the ability to fight all the way to the end.

“It’s a long process that we’ve been building towards, and we just need to stick to our processes,” Nortje said.

“We need to keep working hard for the next week or two, and hopefully get to the playoffs and take it from there.”