South Africa Twenty20 skipper Francois du Plessis yesterday said the fact that they were able to break the confidence of the Bangladesh batsmen was the key reason behind their convincing 2-0 series win in the Twenty20 internationals.
The Tigers were flying high following their recent triumphs over sub-continent rivals India and Pakistan but the Proteas bowling attack afforded the home side little breathing space. And Du Plessis informed that their plans worked perfectly following the 31-run win over the Tigers in the second and final T20I at Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium yesterday.
“They batted incredibly against Pakistan and India so their confidence would have been sky high. So, it was important for us as a team to try and put an end to that confidence. And we did it as a team, which is good leading into the one-day series,” Du Plessis told the media in the post-match press conference.
The 30-year old is now hoping for his side to carry the momentum forward to the three-ODI series, beginning this Friday, although he admitted that 50-over cricket will be a totally different-ball game.
“I also appreciate and understand that one-day cricket is a different format game. So, we will go back to making sure we prepare really well for the ODI series because we will never ever undervalue the team we play against. So, we did really well. And then, hopefully we can do more of the same in the one-day series,” said Du Plessis.
Du Plessis informed that the difference between the two sides was created by the approach of the batsmen. While the Proteas batsmen played with a set game-plan, the Bangladesh batters seemed to go gung-ho right from the onset rather than assessing the pitch and opposition bowling attack first.
“You need different skills in different times and I think that was probably the difference between the two teams. Our skills, when it came to not hitting boundaries, hitting it in the space, taking the strike, taking twos and threes, I thought we did it better than them. Whereas they obviously tried to hit boundaries and in these conditions, it’s not always as easy,” explained Du Plessis before adding, “You have to graft a little bit, put the bowlers under pressure and hit a boundary. After that, I think in that sense you need power but you also need to earn the right to get to that stage where you can get the power hitters in.”
Debutant Eddie Leie was one of the wreckers in chief for the Proteas yesterday, recording impressive bowling figures of 3/16 from his three overs.
When queried if Leie would now fight for a place in the national side with fellow leg-spinner Imran Tahir, Du Plessis said, “No there is no competition. Immi (Imran) is a great bowler. He has done considerably well in the IPL (Indian Premier League) and for our country as well. I think we are a team. We are the Proteas, so if one player gets rested it’s very important for the other spinner to fulfill the roles of that player rested and I am just trying to do that.”