‘I’m in disbelief’: Proteas skipper Bavuma still shocked after World Cup exit

Proteas captain Temba Bavuma admitted he was still in shock on Wednesday, while Cricket South Africa (CSA) prepared to launch a review of the squad’s performance, after the national team touched down at OR Tambo International following a disastrous T20 World Cup campaign in Australia.

South Africa finished third out of six teams in their Super 12 group at the T20 showpiece, earning victories over Bangladesh and giants India and settling for a share of the points in a washed out game against Zimbabwe.

‘Questions and answers’

It was not enough, however, and they were dumped out after defeats to Pakistan and the Netherlands.

Questions would be asked, Bavuma said, and “answers and solutions” would need to be found.

“It’s been three days but I think I’m still trying to process it all,” Bavuma said.

“The emotions and feelings are not as raw as they were after the (Netherlands) game, but I think in terms of the disappointment and disbelief we had, that’s still there.”

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It was the fifth time in the national team’s seven appearances at the T20 World Cup that they failed to progress to the knockout stages, as they once again stumbled in their attempt to lift a maiden World Cup trophy in any format.

The last time the SA senior squad lifted a trophy was back in 1998, when they won the Champions Trophy and Commonwealth Games titles.

CSA review

And with head coach Mark Boucher now stepping down, and being replaced by interim coach Malibongwe Maketa for an upcoming three-Test series in Australia, CSA’s director of cricket, Enoch Nkwe, admitted there was some uncertainty around the team’s future based on their World Cup result.

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Though he insisted the national federation would not dwell upon the shock exit to another global spectacle, and would instead look ahead by laying out a plan for the next five years, he confirmed there would be a review process to assess what happened in Australia.

“I think it is important that we do a review in terms of what has actually happened,” Nkwe said.

“We are in the process of putting a panel together to ensure the review is very clinical.”