South Africa have thrice reached the World Cup semis.
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What's the first thing that comes to your mind when someone says South Africa in the context of ODI cricket? That's a tricky question isn't it? Because usually there are two thoughts that come to a cricket fan's mind almost simultaneously. One, the Proteas are a bunch of extremely talented cricketers (and that's almost always been the case) and two, they are a team that 'chokes' in crunch situations. In other words, they fail to come together as a unit when it matters the most. Is the South African ODI side an overrated team then?(South Africa Won't Choke: De Villiers)
Consider this, the current Proteas side has some exceptionally gifted batsmen in Hashim Amla, AB de Villiers, Faf du Plessis, Quinton de Kock, David Miller and JP Duminy. However, since the 2011 ICC World Cup, this bunch has won 15 and lost 15 out of the 31 times they have chased in an ODI. No wonder then that former Australian captain and NDTV World Cup expert Ian Chappell feels that whenever this team is chasing a target over 250 or so, they can be put under pressure. Chappell in fact has said, "I think their batting, it's much-vaunted but I don't think it's as good as what everyone thinks it is. I think it's too heavily reliant on AB de Villiers and particularly when they are chasing. If you look at their record while chasing, de Villiers is terrific but he is being let down by some of the other players."
The Proteas have two of the most feared bowlers in world cricket in Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel. But neither features in the top 5 of the highest wicket-takers' list of the 2015 World Cup.� (Complete World Cup 2015 coverage� |� Knockout stage: Who plays whom and where� |� Fixtures)
In the league stage South Africa failed to beat both India and Pakistan. Despite scoring 339 vs Zimbabwe, South Africa won by a margin of just 62 runs. In fact, the only thumping win for them against a big team in this World Cup has been against the West Indies.(De Villiers Focuses on Team Building)
It's one of those Bermuda Triangle variety mysteries isn't it? Why doesn't South Africa do well at the big stage, specially in the knockout rounds? For a long time no South African wanted to admit that they choke in pressure situations. AB de Villiers though didn't shy away from using the 'c-word' ahead of their quarter final clash versus Sri Lanka. His answer to the question, how will you deal with the tag of chokers was simple, " All I can say is we're not going to choke." You could almost feel the pain in his voice.
Not too many people will openly call South Africa an overrated team, even though on multiple online fan chat forums, the Proteas are criticised for being perennial chokers, and considered highly overrated. The equation is simple - if a team doesn't win trophies, no matter how talented its players are, they will attract brickbats. One of the most interesting facets of the South African team though is the fact that they have had some of the most well mannered cricketers off the field over the years. From Shaun Pollock to Jonty Rhodes, from Graeme Smith to AB de Villiers and the Morkel brothers. Even pacer Dale Steyn, who breathes fire on the field, almost always has a smile on his face off it, always stopping to sign autographs. Maybe that, coupled with the fact that they are genuinely talented cricketers, makes fans (not just those from South Africa) root for them.
However history stands testament to the fact that the only big ICC tournament South Africa has won is the inaugural Champions Trophy in 1998. In the last 17 years they have produced top quality players, challenged the best teams in the world, broken records and made fans go wow. However, they have also faltered every time just at the cusp of greatness. Statistics don't lie. So unless the Proteas come good at last this time round, the question that will ring out loudest will be - are South Africa an overrated ODI team?
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