South Africa's tryst with Cricket world cup illustrates the importance of mental strength in competitive cricket. South Africa reached semi-finals in its first world cup appearance in 1991-92 but lost to England in the semi-finals (thanks to duckworth-Lewis method). But, South Africans lost to Australia in the semi-finals of 1999 world cup due to lack of mental strength. South Africa is a perennial favourite but rarely wins crucial matches in the major tournaments. They are working hard to claim the "Chokers" tag at every major cricket tournament.  In football, Spain and Holland also used to buckle under pressure in crucial games at FIFA World cup. But, South Africans can take inspiration from Spaniards who overcame this weakness and won in 2010 Soccer world cup held in South Africa. If these "Chokers" play to their potential, they can win title in 2011 Cricket world cup.    ICC Rankings Highlight: World's top 2 oneday batsmen are South Africans. Best wicket-keeper batsman is a South African.   2011 Cricket world cup – South African team analysis:  Current ICC one day Ranking: 4  Coach: Corrie van Zyl  Captain: Graeme Smith  Crucial players: Jacques Kallis, Dale Steyn, Hashim Amla & AB De Villiers  Missing players: Mark Boucher, Herschelle Gibbs, Justin Kemp & David Miller  Group B: South Africa, India, England, Bangladesh, West Indies, Ireland & Netherlands.  Qualification: Directly qualified basing on ICC Oneday team team rankings.  World cup history: South Africa caught the attention of cricket world with a series of outstanding performances (who can forget Jhonty Rhodes fielding?) in its first world cup (1991-92) but failed to replicate those heroics. But, they played crucial role in raising the fielding standards in International cricket.   South African squad for 2011 Cricket World Cup:   S.NoCricketer NameAgeRankState/City      Batsmen:        1.Graeme Smith 30 16 Johannesburg 2.Hashim Amla 27 1 Durban 3.JP Duminy 26 25 Cape Town 4.Faf du Plessis 26  Pretoria 5.Colin Ingram 25 155 Port Elizabeth                 All-rounders:        1.Jacques Kallis 35 9 & 53 Cape Town 2. Johan Botha 28  Johannesburg                 Wicket-Keepers:        1.AB de Villiers 27 2 Pretoria 2. Morne van Wyk          Bowlers:        1.Dale Steyn 27 17 Phalaborwa 2.Morne Morkel 26 12 Transvaal 3.Lonwabo Tsotsobe 27 49 Port Elizabeth 4.Wayne Parnell 21 62 Port Elizabeth 5.Imran Tahir 31 -  6. Robin Petersen 31  Port Elizabeth         Schedule of South Africa's world cup matches:  1. February 24: Vs West Indies at Feroz Shah Kotla in New Delhi  2. March 3: Vs netherlands at PCA stadium in Mohali  3. March 6: Vs England at MA Chidambaram stadium in Chennai  4. March 12: Vs India at Vidarbha stadium in Nagpur - Must watch match.  5. March 15: Vs Ireland at Eden Gardens in Kolkata  6. March 19: Vs Bangladesh in Dhaka   Strengths: Consistent batsmen, best wicket-keeper batsman & Dale Steyn   Weaknesses: Poor spinners & lack of backup batsmen.   Our rating for South African world cup squad: 8/10   Our prediction for South Africa in 2011 World Cup:  South Africa has wonderful batsmen who can play even on dusty turning tracks. But, who will bowl out opposition on these tracks? South Africa will easily reach semi-finals and may reach finals if they play semi-final in Mohali. "Chokers" may try their best to remove that unwanted tag.   Please share your views on South African cricket team.   … [Read more...]