South Africa’s first T20 World Cup Super Eight match against India at the Narendra Modi Stadium on Sunday is the perfect opportunity for the under-fire Dewald Brevis to translate promise into performance. India are yet to lose in the tournament, but even South Africa are undefeated.
Brevis hasn’t been instrumental to his team’s cause so far in the tournament. He holed out to mid-off cheaply against Canada, miscued a drive to to walk back for 23 off 19 against Afghanistan, scored 21 off 17 against New Zealand before falling to Rachin Ravindra by skying a catch to long-on, and hoisted another dolly to long-off against the UAE.
“Consistency is really not something we look for in T20 cricket. We’re watching for impact, and Dewald is that player. He can make an impact on the game singlehandedly.”, Shukri Conrad, the South African coach, said.
“So can other players. But the bigger the occasion, the more the real Dewald Brevis stands out. We saw that in the SA20. He had a lean period, and then in running into the knockout stages he stood up. He thrives on the big occasion. He’s an X-factor player, and we’ll give him his head and allow him to do that.”
