LAURA Wolvaardt and the Proteas Women’s team levelled the series 1-1 on Friday, beating the Bangladesh Women’s team by eight wickets in the third and final T20I at the Diamond Oval in Kimberley.
Following what was a concerning performance in the first T20I – where the hosts handed the Bangladesh Women’s team their first-ever victory in South Africa – captain Wolvaardt highlighted a number of key improvements from the first game.
One was an excellent performance from youngster Ayanda Hlubi (2/15 in 4 overs), who set the game up for Wolvaardt (49 off 49, 5×4) to see the hosts home with 28 balls to spare.
“The big one was our execution with the ball. Having looked at the footage of the first game, it looked like we were very full, missed our lengths early, had something like 20 or 12 full tosses in that game as well, which is not ideal,” said Wolvaardt.
“We were excellent (in the third game) and found our lengths early on. We just set the fields well and bowled really well to those fields, a lot better than in the first game.
“I think Ayanda Hlubi had an excellent start to her career. I wish I’d started like that when I was a youngster. She just brings a lot of energy, as you saw the celebrations were awesome, and she just has that young fearlessness about her.
“She’s been a great addition to the squad and I’m glad that she took her opportunity with both hands. I think the conversations (with her) will just be to let her do what she does best and not put too much pressure too early, and have senior players guide her.”
SA END THE SERIES ON A HIGH 👌
Laura Wolvaadrt stood tall as she led the Proteas Women to a convincing 8 wicket victory against Bangladesh 🇿🇦🇧🇩#WozaNawe #BePartOfIt #SAWvBANW pic.twitter.com/z11tIooln6
— Proteas Women (@ProteasWomenCSA) December 8, 2023
With youngsters Hlubi (19), Eliz-Mari Marx (20) and Annerie Dercksen (22), there is no doubt about the depth in the women’s domestic set-up, and with opportunities the youngsters will become finished articles.
Wolvaardt highlighted her excitement about the talent that is coming through the ranks.
“We’ve lost a lot of key players. We’ve had a lot of retirements recently, and then had a lot of injuries this series as well,” she said.
“So, it’s been a great series to have youngsters step up, and I think the have done an excellent job. It shows there’s depth in the country. It makes me excited about the future. It’s exciting to know that we have that talent whenever we need it.”
The Proteas women now switch their focus to the One Day International series, which starts in East London on December 16.
