The Momentum Proteas Women suffered their second ICC Women’s World Cup 2013 warm-up match defeat when they faced Sri Lanka at the MIG Cricket Club in Mumbai on Tuesday.
They lost by two wickets to a determined Sri Lanka.
South Africa were put in to bat first after Sri Lanka won the toss and were skittled for 164 in 45.2 overs. Captain Mignon du Preez (59) was once again the stand-out performer with the bat as her team-mates failed to add runs to the scoreboard.
Dané van Niekerk added 46 vital runs and shared a 72-run partnership for the seventh wicket with her captain to get their side to a respectable score.
It was not enough by all accounts. Coach Hilton Moreeng agreed that they were more than 40 runs short.
“The Sri Lankans made use of the conditions and our batters could not adapt. The pitch was damp and sticky and this is something we are not used to.
“We were five wickets down within the first 10 overs and, although Mignon and Dané did well to rebuild the innings, we lost wickets at regular intervals and never got to a score we could defend,” he said.
Although it has not been a dream start, Moreeng is confident that these are the lessons that need learning now, while not so much is at stake.
“It’s not all negatives. We did well when we took the ball and put them under pressure. They were six wickets down for 66 in the 23rd over but, again, we were not clinical enough on the field and did not take our chances and finish the day.”
