OPINION: Tricky pitch to test Proteas’ mettle in T20 World Cup

The Proteas were given a rude awakening to the challenges of playing on a drop in pitch after they eked out a six wicket win over Sri Lanka in their T20 World Cup opener in New York on Monday.

The 34,000-seat temporary stadium at Eisenhower Park on Long Island in Nassau County, was built specifically for the T20 World Cup at a cost of $30 million (about R560 million) and will be dismantled at the end of the tournament.

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Leading into the tournament questions had been raised about how the drop in pitch which is being used would play, and it looks to be an extremely tricky one for batsmen, as was evidenced by the low scoring encounter on Monday.

In the match Sri Lanka batted first and were bowled out for their lowest ever T20 total of 77, with Anrich Nortje claiming the best ever figures by a South African at a T20 World Cup, picking up a brilliant 4/7 in his four overs.

Ottneil Baartman was also miserly, claiming 1/9 in his four overs, while Kagiso Rabada, 2/21, and Keshav Maharaj, 2/22, were also amongst the wickets.

Walk in the park

Most fans would think chasing 78 would be a walk in the park, but the Proteas were made to work hard to chase it down due to the condition of the pitch, which was extremely bowler friendly thanks to its variable bounce, and very slow outfield which made boundary hitting tough.

It took 16.2 overs for them to chase the score down, with Quinton de Kock top scoring with 20 off 27 balls, while fellow big hitters Heinrich Klaasen, 19no off 22, Tristan Stubbs, 13 off 28, and Aiden Markram, 12 off 14, also scored at less than a run a ball showing how difficult it was to score.

In all just 12 boundaries were hit across the two innings, split evenly with three fours and three sixes hit between both teams.

The unpredictability of the pitch could now play a big role over the rest of the tournament, and with the Proteas set to play two more pool games there, it could make for a difficult few games.

That includes the Proteas next match on Saturday which will be against the Netherlands, a team that they ordinarily would be expected to beat, but who has beaten them in consecutive World Cups, in Australia (T20) in 2022 and in India (50-over) last year.