OX’S BAZAR: Head coach Dinesha Devnarain and top-order batter Faye Tunnicliffe have reflected on the SA Emerging Women’s successful One-Day campaign against Bangladesh Emerging Women, which concluded with a 2-1 series victory for the visitors in Chattogram last week.
South Africa kicked off the 50-over leg of the tour in fine style with back-to-back wins by five wickets and two wickets, respectively, before the home side bounced back to claim a consolation 14-run win in the final One-Dayer.
Reflecting on the significance of securing a series victory in subcontinental conditions, SA Emerging Women’s Devnarain praised the team’s resilience and highlighted the role of the side’s more experienced players.
“It’s really tough conditions. It’s something that we’re not used to, with this extreme heat. The humidity is high. It never really cools down, so I’m definitely pleased with the team, just the way they went about their business.
“It took some experienced players to see the team through, and there’s a nice blend of youngsters as well as good domestic players, so really chuffed. It’s quite a huge honour that the ladies pulled off a series win. We would have loved to make it 3-0, but it’s usually the games that we lose that we learn the most,” Devnarain commented.
On lessons learned from the tour so far, Devnarain pointed to tactical improvements with both bat and ball as priorities going forward.
“We’re taking lots of learnings,” the head coach noted. “The biggest one for us is our extras. We just need to be better with our extras. We need to try to do our best in terms of bringing in our cutters or variations earlier. We want to be on one side of the wicket. As a batting unit, we still want to play fearless cricket, but we want that with responsibility as well, to make sure that whoever is in there, is to finish the game off and see that through.”
Among the standout performers in the One-Day series was all-rounder Delmi Tucker, who topped the wicket charts with eight dismissals. Ghandi Jafta made key contributions with both bat and ball, including a vital half-century and three wickets.
However, it was Faye Tunnicliffe who stole the show. The World Sports Betting Western Province batter amassed 166 runs at an average of 83, including an unbeaten 89 off 118 deliveries in the opening match.
“It was a good One-Day series in trying conditions. There was a lot of graft required, a lot of mental fortitude and the heat is next level. Not a lot of us have played in conditions like this, but I enjoyed it.
“I really enjoyed the challenges and trying to figure out different strategies. A couple of their bowlers are from the senior team, so they’re pretty top-class. It was good to sort of test myself in the subcontinent against some of the ladies playing at the highest level, which is quite cool,” Tunnicliffe added.
Attention now shifts to the T20 leg of the tour, which gets underway on Wednesday, 14 May at the Cox’s Bazar Academy Ground. Despite the One-Day success, Tunnicliffe believes the squad will need to maintain their focus and intensity to complete the double.
“The T20s are anyone’s game. Being as switched on as possible is going to be important for us, and I know there is a bit of rain predicted for the second and third game, so the first game is going to be quite crucial for us.
“It’s mostly going to be about mindset, just being as clinical as possible while still being aggressive and trying to take calculated risks. Hopefully, we can come out with a win as well. The fact that we won the One-Day series was really important for SA Emerging cricket. And if we can come off with a double win, that would be great. The ambition is to bring home both of the trophies,” she concluded.
SA Emerging Women’s Squad against Bangladesh Emerging
Leah Jones (T20 captain, World Sports Betting Western Province), Kgomotso Rapoo (50-over captain, DP World Lions), Alexandra Candler (Hollywoodbets Dolphins), Nicole De Klerk (Hollywoodbets Dolphins), Jenna Evans (DP World Lions), Ghandi Jafta (Fidelity Titans), Zintle Kula (Knights), Eliz-Mari Marx (Fidelity Titans), Mona Lisa Legodi (Fidelity Titans), Simone Lourens (Fidelity Titans), Luyanda Nzuza (Knights), Verunissa Reddy (Knights), Nonkululeko Thabethe (DP World Lions), Delmi Tucker (World Sports Betting Western Province) and Faye Tunnicliffe (World Sports Betting Western Province).
Management
Dinesha Davnarain (Head Coach), Marcia Letsoalo (Manager), Claire Terblanche (Batting Coach), Angelique Taai (Bowling Coach), Yolandi van der Westhuizen (Fielding Coach), Dr Dhavina Naidoo-Jewkes (Team Doctor), Stacey-lee Hercules (Strength and Conditioning Coach), Tshepi Letsholo (Physiotherapist) and Adele van Eck (Team Analyst).
SA Emerging Women Fixtures
One-Day Matches
Tuesday, 06 May at 06h00 SAST – Bangladesh Emerging vs South Africa Emerging – BSFLMRCS, Chattogram
Thursday, 08 May at 06h00 SAST – Bangladesh Emerging vs South Africa Emerging – BSFLMRCS, Chattogram
Sunday, 11 May at 06h00 SAST – Bangladesh Emerging vs South Africa Emerging – BSFLMRCS, Chattogram
T20 Matches
Wednesday, 14 May at 09h30 SAST – Bangladesh Emerging vs South Africa Emerging – Cox’s Bazar Academy Ground, Cox’s Bazar
Friday, 16 May at 09h30 SAST – Bangladesh Emerging vs South Africa Emerging – Cox’s Bazar Academy Ground, Cox’s Bazar
Sunday, 18 May at 09h30 SAST – Bangladesh Emerging vs South Africa Emerging – Cox’s Bazar Academy Ground, Cox’s Bazar
Source: cricket.co.za
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