The South African skipper said the spin attack, which also featured the wicketless Robin Petersen, who bowls left-arm orthodox, had enabled paceman Dale Steyn to make an impact. Steyn ended with figures of 3-24. "One of the advantages of having a lot of spin options also is that when we do use Dale he can come in and make a really big impact for us. His pace was really up today again."
Published: Feb 25, 2011, 03:03 PM (IST)
Edited: Feb 25, 2011, 03:03 PM (IST)
South Africa captain Graeme Smith, seen here playing a shot during their match against the West Indies at the Feroz Shah Kotla stadium in New Delhi
New Delhi: Feb 25, 2011
South African skipper Graeme Smith said it had been “one of those days” after his decision to field a three-pronged spin attack paid rich dividends with an opening World Cup win over the West Indies.
Off-break bowler Johan Botha opened the bowling and grabbed two wickets for 48 on Thursday but the star performer with the ball was debutant leg-spinner Imran Tahir, who took 4-41 as South Africa cruised to a seven-wicket win.
South Africa have kept Pakistan-born Tahir under wraps in the lead-up to the tournament and their strategy paid off against the West Indies. “He bowled really well. We tried to use him in short spells and obviously tried to get the timing right for when we used him. I think that was good. He responded superbly well,” Smith said.
“He picked up key wickets for us. Every time he came on he made an impact for us so that was terrific. I think the guys bowled really well around him and created good pressure for him. Sometimes when you come up with things and they work out it’s a great feeling. They don’t always do that but today it was one of those days,” said Smith.
The South African skipper said the spin attack, which also featured the wicketless Robin Petersen, who bowls left-arm orthodox, had enabled paceman Dale Steyn to make an impact. Steyn ended with figures of 3-24. “One of the advantages of having a lot of spin options also is that when we do use Dale he can come in and make a really big impact for us. His pace was really up today again.”
Smith also praised AB de Villiers, who put on 119 runs for the third wicket with the skipper and went on to score 107 not out as South Africa overhauled the West Indies score of 222 all out with 43 balls to spare. “He hit the ball sweetly and he probably made the wicket look a lot easier than everyone else did so it was a great knock and I just tried to hang in there with him and it was great to watch from the other end.”
Smith said South Africa would reassess their bowling options going into their next game against the Netherlands on March 3, saying paceman Lonwabo Tsotsobe would play a major role in the tournament. “I think I trusted my gut feel today and it seemed to work out. If you can be one step ahead it’s always a bonus but sometimes you’ll do things and they won’t work out and you’ll be asking why. Today was a good day,” he said.
“We’ll move on to Holland and we’ll assess the Mohali wicket and the team we’re up against and just take eight days to think about that now, so that’s a good time.”
