Visiting captains upbeat about their chances

The visiting team captains of Zimbabwe, South Africa and SA A participating in the Over 50’s African Cricket Cup Tournament sponsored by Nedbank, are in Namibia to compete and give their opponents a run for their money. “We are here to defend our title. We won the first Africa Cup by defeating Zimbabwe. We've played a lot of cricket in the respective provinces. The guys are fit and battle ready,” commented Mario Solomons, captain of the South Africa veterans.His team is working towards the World Cup, Solomons said. “I have some idea of who we want to take with, but there are still places up for grabs, so it's all to play for. ” Well equippedPreparations for the tournament went very well, he said. “Veterans cricket is self-funded, so we did not get the opportunity to train as a team per se. We however visited high-performance centres and worked on our skill set and fitness.” Solomons gave the assurance that his squad would do everything in their means to win the tournament. “We're in it to win it. We are quite a balanced team with great batsmen that can bat for long spells and power batters from the bowling department. We have capable opening bowlers, good depth bowlers and three excellent spinners. I am encouraging all players to enjoy every moment and make this week a memorable week.” He admitted that the absence of former Proteas all-rounder Alan Dawson leaves a big gap. “He is superb with the ball, the bat and in the field. We will miss his experience.” Healthy rivalry Zimbabwe’s captain Darrell Goodwin acknowledged that there is always rivalry between his side and the South Africans. Goodwin said preparations have gone well despite the full squad not being able to get together to train.“We had our first outing here in Namibia, because we had players who joined us from New Zealand (one), Australia (three), Zambia (two), Zimbabwe (two), South Africa (two) and Mauritius (one).”Goodwin was confident that his team packs enough ammunition in terms of depth and strength. “We should be okay. We have some ex-international players and Murray Goodwin, as everybody knows, is a great player. We also have some slightly younger bowlers aged 51 and 52 so that's all good.”The aim is to have fun and win the tournament, he added. “That's our mandate, to come here and win it properly. We should play the game with good aggression and in good sportsmanship.” Fit as a fiddleAccording to Russel Bennett (52), captain of South Africa A and former Springbok rugby fullback in six tests in 1997, a lot of his team mates play in the provincial Veterans League. “Some play for their second teams with everybody trying to play as much cricket as they possibly can. We also put in a lot of net and fielding practice; I think we're pretty fit and ready.” Bennett said his team aims to be highly competitive on the field. “We certainly have a couple of guys that I think are going to surprise our opponents. Let's fight it out on the field.”Cricket enthusiasts unable to attend the games can follow NTV’s live broadcast of every game at https://oneuptwo.com, DStv (channel 285), and GOtv (channel 25).

Visiting captains upbeat about their chances

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Republikein 2025-04-03

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Visiting captains upbeat about their chances

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