Smith looking to widen Test rankings gap between http://www.senore.com/Cricket/South-Africa-c757 and other teams – Cricket News Update
South Africa retained the top spot in Test rankings after an ecstatic series win over the Kangaroos in Australia. Having momentum on their side, the Proteas are looking to further extend their lead on the rankings table during their home summer, shared the
skipper, http://www.senore.com/Cricket/GC-Smith-c1473.
"We have worked hard to be here and we knew that Australia would be the big stepping stone for us holding onto number one (ranking). We have given ourselves the opportunity for our home summer to create a bit of a gap between us and the other teams. It is
an opportunity to build something really special. The motivation for us will be to beat New Zealand first up,” said Smith.
South Africa defeated Australia in a 3-match series 1-0. Drawing the first two games at Brisbane and Adelaide required herculean efforts from the Proteas in order to survive the Australian attack; however, they bounced back strongly in the final encounter
to nail a 309-run win at Perth.
“When you go to another country you have to figure out how we win here, how we deal with the pressures of performing in front of someone else's media and crowds,” added Smith.
http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Smith-c90598 also feels that having versatile players in the side gives them a big advantage over their opponents.
Hailing the team’s performance on the Australian tour, the South African coach, http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Gary-Kirsten-c58527, feels it was a very important achievement for the side and should be taken very seriously.
Having played 9 out of 10 Tests this year away from home, Kirsten also praised the side over their wins against http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Australia-c746.
The Proteas are now scheduled to play 3 T20s, 2 Tests and 3 ODIs against http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Sri-Lanka-c758, and would be high on morale. However,
with veteran http://www.senore.com/Cricket/DL-Vettori-c1384 ruled out and speculations over a possible captaincy change making the rounds, the South Africans may have the upper hand in the series.
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