Australia’s 10-wicket loss to New Zealand in the first of the three-match Chappell-Hadlee one-day international (ODI) series in Wellington on Friday morning is South Africa’s gain.
South Africa are now joint leaders in the International Cricket Council (ICC) ODI standings, on 128 points with Australia. If Australia lose another match in the series, South Africa will be stand-alone leaders in the rankings, with just weeks to go before the start of the ICC World Cup in the West Indies.
South Africa captain Graeme Smith said the Proteas were not daunted by the implications of the number one ranking.
”When the team realised they were that close to being number one, no one was scared of it. When we talked about it before the last game [against Pakistan], you could feel the excitement and the feel that all the hard work we had put in had been worth it,” said Smith.
”The World Cup is the same. We don’t mind carrying the tag of being World Cup favourites. In the World Cup environment, it doesn’t make you a better team than Australia. You’ve still got to perform on every given day that you play.
”But to be the number one team in the world is a huge feather in our caps.
”And it’s recognition of the way we’ve performed over the last two years, and the way everyone in the team has contributed. So yes, we’re excited, and we’re also excited about our prospects in the World Cup.
”If we can be number one team in the world, and also win the World Cup, that would be awesome for everybody.” — Sapa