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Before the highly anticipated clash at the top of the table in the ODI World Cup 2023, Temba Bavuma, the captain of South Africa, tackled the perennial question about the “chokers” tag associated with them. The 33-year-old was at his fiery best at the pre-match press conference, stating his doubts about the same tag getting associated with India, just a day before their clash against the hosts at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata.
India and South Africa have easily been the two of the best teams of the ODI World Cup 2023, dominating the majority of the oppositions that have come their way thus far. While the Men in Blue have reached the semi-final of the flagship tournament, South Africa are all but certain to achieve the same feat, if the results go their way in the lead-up to their marquee contest on Sunday, November 5.
As per the report from the Times of India, Temba Bavuma wasn’t mincing his words while addressing the reporters who had asked him about how the “chokers” tag plays on the mind of the South African players before a big encounter. With his poker-faced expression, he was quoted as saying, ““To choke? I don’t know how to answer that. I think if we come unstuck tomorrow, I don’t think it’ll be a matter of choking. I doubt you would say that about India as well if they come unstuck if they choke.”
He elaborated, “You got two teams who are in-form, coming up against each other and I think it’s just a matter of who breaks first and who’s able to, I guess, exploit that moment or that weakness. We understand that there will be pressure moments within the World Cup, moments that we’ve overcome to get to this point, and there will still be more. We’ll deal with them as best as we can. But yeah, I haven’t heard that word come up as of yet in the training.”
