As the countdown to the start of the World Cup continued in Cape Town on Saturday, South African captain Shaun Pollock conceded that he’d had a few sleepless hours during the week leading up to South Africa’s opening match against the West Indies at Newlands on Saturday.
Even though Pollock insisted that he and his team were about as prepared as they could be for the tournament, he admitted that there had been moments when he had lain awake at night. So, the obvious question was, what did he do in his hotel room when sleep eluded him.
”Read a book, watch TV,” he said, before pausing, ”and I phone Eric (Simons, the South African coach.)”
As hosts, the South Africans have been much in demand during the past week. ”It’s been pretty hectic,” said Pollock. ”Maybe it hasn’t been ideal, but the guys have gone about it superbly. They’ve done everything in a really professional manner.”
He played down suggestions that the South Africans might be struggling under a burden of expectation. ”We play at home all the time,” he said. ”Sure, the World Cup’s a bigger event than most, there will more people watching, but we’re a proud sporting nation and we’re used to dealing with the pressure. We’re trying to use all of it as a positive and I think we’ve still prepared as best we can.”
Simons said that the South Africans were ”pretty close” to settling on a team to face the West Indies, but it would seem that the only real matter for debate lies in choosing Lance Klusener or Andrew Hall for one of the lower-order all-rounder positions.
And even though Hall scored a century as an opener in South Africa’s final warm-up game against Western Province on Tuesday, Klusener’s experience will probably ensure that he starts the tournament.
Pollock did not dwell on the question of Sunday’s opponents, the West Indies, but he did say that he would be surprised to see his Natal team-mate Nixon McLean included for the opening match. ”I think they’ll stick with their tried and trusted guys,” he said.
The South Africans are due to meet with former president Nelson Mandela on Sunday morning, after taking part in Saturday night’s opening ceremony. They also held their final practice session in private on Saturday afternoon..
Pollock insisted that the South Africans are not haunted by the traumatic 1999 semi-final against Australia when a tie denied them a place in the final. ”We look in 1999 as the best we’ve ever done in a World Cup. We try to see the positive. I think we’ve pretty much dealt with 1999 over time.”
”Newlands has been a good ground for us over the years,” said Pollock. ”It’s a nice place to start and being the host team is great. I think we’ll be able to enjoy the occasion.”
More cricket in our Cricket World Cup special report