Proteas’ new T20 journey all about high risk, high reward for white-ball coach Rob Walter
Gqeberha — South Africa are taking the upcoming T20 International series against the West Indies seriously in search of the blueprint for the shortest format of the game.
This is a big year for 50-over cricket as the 13th edition of the ODI World Cup will be staged in India from October. The shortest version of the game, T20 cricket, has taken a back seat for a short while as teams around the world prepare for the biggest tournament in international cricket.
South Africa aim to use the three-match T20I series against the West Indies as a way to bring Kagiso Rabada and Anrich Nortje back into competitive cricket after being rested for the ODIs.
"This T20 series also provides an opportunity to get guys like Kagiso Rabada, Anrich Nortje back to the mix and to get them ready for the Netherlands games in a way," Rob Walter told the media on Thursday.
"Certainly, for them to get the competitive edge back, get out in the middle, compete and put their skills under pressure. These guys are seasoned pros, so it's about getting back to a competitive environment really."
Walter understands the need to establish some form of blueprint for T20 cricket, just as he has done with ODI cricket. The new coach confirmed the squad will be taking the series seriously, to win it and to tick a few boxes going into the ODIs against the Netherlands.
"It's a little more serious than just having some fun. It's figuring out what the blueprint looks like in the T20 format of the game. The risk-taking does escalate, because your time is less, so you have to take more risks in order to get to where you want to get to," said Walter.
"Also, from a bowling point of view it's how do we aggressively influence the game in T20 cricket which looks a little different to 50-over cricket. We're always trying to fine-tune what the end point will look like. It's all part of the bigger picture in my opinion.
"We understand how important these T20s are as well, I think there's 35 ODIs in the four-year cycle and about 40 T20s. There's not a lot of T20s in between now and the World Cup. Every event is important and is an important opportunity."
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