CANBERRA: Ireland go into Tuesday’s World Cup clash against South Africa in Canberra faced with a question that even fanciful Test nations have struggled to find an answer for.

How does one tame the rampaging A.B. de Villiers before he destroys the rivals’ bowling attack, dents their morale and leaves them dumbstruck by what just hit them?

The West Indies once more suffered at the hands of the South African captain who, despite a stomach illness, smashed an audacious 162 off 66 balls with 17 boundaries and eight sixes in Sydney on Friday to fashion a 257-run win.

It was against the same team that de Villers smashed the fastest one-day century off 31 balls at home in January, prompting former Australian dasher Adam Gilchrist to call him the “most valuable cricketer on the planet.”

The proud Irish team, whose cricket has developed rapidly under their West Indies coach Phil Simmons, will look to run the mighty Proteas closely after winning their first two games in the tournament.

Simmons insisted the result against the West Indies was not an upset because his team was now capable of matching skills with the more established teams.

“It excited me the way we played against the West Indies,” said Simmons.

“They played four fast bowlers, thinking we would not be able to cope with the speed. It’s the best I’ve seen the team play and it augurs well for the future.”

Strong bench behind Proteas success

Ireland overcame wayward bowling in their next game defeating United Arab Emirates.

If other results go their way, even one win from their four remaining games against South Africa, India, Pakistan and Zimbabwe could see Ireland qualify for the quarter-finals.

However, past records favour South Africa. Ireland have lost all three ODIs against them so far. Their last match took place at the 2011 World Cup.

Still, the Irish can be expected to blast away at the batting friendly Manuka Oval wicket.

The Proteas will again rely on their “bench” in the match as the impressive depth in their line-up had been underlined in the match against the West Indies with paceman Vernon Philander and JP Duminy out injured.

All-rounder Farhaan Behardien said building a strong bench had been an “emphasis” for South Africa for some six months leading into the World Cup.

“We played against the West Indies in South Africa, and... our bench was so strong,” Behardien told reporters at Canberra’s Manuka Oval on Tuesday.

“Rilee, what a wonderful player. He came in and scored two hundreds in South Africa against the West Indies when he was on the bench.

“(All-rounder Wayne) Parnell was on the bench against West Indies, picked up four wickets in the last ODI, and similarly (left-arm spinner) Aaron Phangiso is waiting in the wings, and when he steps up to the plate, he’ll be asked to do a job.

“The squad of 15 is vitally important to our cause, and going forward, you never know there might be an injury or somebody might pick up a stomach bug or whatever. The emphasis is on the 15 instead of 11.”

Behardien said about Steyn’s 100th match, “We all know what a wonderful performer he’s been over the years.

“We’ll try and celebrate his 100th game with a win and we’ll be fighting tooth and nail come tomorrow.”

Squads and officials:

IRELAND: William Porterfield (captain), Andrew Balbirnie, Peter Chase, Alex Cusack, George Dockrell, Ed Joyce, Andrew McBrine, John Mooney, Kevin O’Brien, Niall O’Brien, Max Sorensen, Paul Stirling, Stuart Thompson, Gary Wilson, Craig Young.

SOUTH AFRICA: AB de Villiers (capt), Hashim Amla, Quinton de Kock, Farhaan Behardien, JP Duminy, Faf du Plessis, Imran Tahir, David Miller, Morne Morkel, Dale Steyn, Kyle Abbott, Wayne Parnell, Aaron Phangiso, Rilee Rossouw.

Umpires: Steve Davis (AUS) and Ranmore Martinesz (SRI)

TV umpire: Ian Gould (ENG)

Match referee: Roshan Mahanama (SRI)

Weather forecast: Cloudy with chance of shower. Maximum temperature of 27 Celsius.

Published in Dawn March 3rd , 2015

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