It started with a football warm-up. Players were keeping the ball in the air, building excitement as the kick-ups went on. Then, one slightly off-target pass put Tabraiz Shamsi in a tough spot. It looked like he wasn’t the best football player technically, and the game would end there. Soon after, the group broke up, and the South Africans started getting ready for a normal cricket practice.
After a quick trip back from Dubai, New Zealand didn’t push their bowlers too hard. Mitchell Santner mentioned they just needed to make sure they were ready. South Africa’s captain, Temba Bavuma, believes the bowling contest between the two teams will be really important.
“New Zealand has a strong bowling attack,” he said. “They are very disciplined. Their opening bowlers don’t give you easy runs. As an opening batter, you have to be sharp. And in the middle overs, they have bowlers who can tighten up the game and make you make mistakes. We know our batters will have to work hard. We’ll need to build an innings to get ourselves into a position where we can attack them.”
Bavuma’s respect for New Zealand’s bowling is clear from the stats. Besides India, who played in Dubai where scoring is harder, New Zealand has bowled more dot balls than any other team in the tournament. They also have the best economy rate. Looking at games in Pakistan during the Champions Trophy, New Zealand bowlers are top for dot balls – Michael Bracewell, Will O’Rourke, and Mitchell Santner.
But Bavuma also thinks highly of his own bowling attack. “We are also confident in our bowling. It will be a good competition between both sets of bowlers. I don’t think there’s much difference between them.”
Unlike New Zealand’s bowlers, South Africa’s bowlers had a full practice session, training later than usual, from 7 to 10 pm the night before the game.
Marco Jansen and Wiaan Mulder bowled for long stretches. Kagiso Rabada’s practice was lighter, mostly fielding drills and some short bursts of bowling. South Africa had flown from Karachi to Dubai on Sunday in case they had to play the first semi-final, but then flew back to Lahore on Monday when they found out they were playing the second semi-final instead.
Bavuma said this travel couldn’t be an excuse for his team. “Logistically, things could have been smoother,” he said. “But the guys did enjoy their time in Dubai. Some played golf, some went sightseeing. It was a bit of fun, and some used the time to rest. Guys made the best of it.”
Three weeks earlier, these two teams played in Lahore in a much less important game. It was the second match of a tri-series, a day game on a cold February morning. The pitch was flat, and a weaker South African team scored 304. Kane Williamson then hit an unbeaten century, guiding New Zealand to an easy win. Williamson, Bavuma noted, is “always a thorn” for them.
Bavuma mentioned that even though that previous game was different, they could still learn from it. “It gave us a look at that New Zealand team,” he said. “The team we played against – I don’t think it will be too different from who they play tomorrow. We have some different players, of course. There is a difference there. When we played, it was a good batting wicket, but in the last game here between Australia and Afghanistan, the ball swung quite a bit.”
Rabada and Mulder practiced catching under the lights, joking and laughing. Ryan Rickelton was hitting balls well in practice, the sound of his bat echoing in the empty stadium.
Dale Steyn, who is in Lahore as a commentator, came to the practice area and spoke with some players. Jansen said it’s “just another game,” and South Africa are trying to treat it like just another practice session.
These two teams, with lots of talent but missing major trophies, know that wanting to win doesn’t guarantee it. So, Rabada took a sharp catch, Rickelton hit a strong shot, and Jansen bowled fast. And then they practiced again. Just like South Africa and New Zealand always do.
Danyal Rasool is ESPNcricinfo’s Pakistan correspondent. @Danny61000
