Cronje details Plan A (19 January 1999)

19 January 1999

Cronje details Plan A

Tony Cozier at Centurion Park

Hansie Cronje on Monday detailed how South Africa had planned their campaign that ended in the first 5-0 defeat the West Indies have ever sustained in a Test series.

It was a lesson to the West Indies as to how they should go about assessing their opponents and regrouping for the imminent series against the powerful Australians in the Caribbean.

"It wasn't a major video session of watching the West Indies," the triumphant South African captain said. "We basically sat down and looked at the figures."

"The figures suggested that the West Indies had two very dangerous bowlers, Curtly Ambrose and Courtney Walsh, but that the others hadn't got the experience of those two," he noted.

"So it was important for us to get those two bowlers out of the way from a batting point of view, up front, to make sure they didn't cause too much damage and then really cash in when McLean, Dillon, Rose and Lewis came on."

"You'll recall that when Ambrose and Walsh bowled in tandem, they really looked like having our batters at sixes and sevens but, even though we were in those desperate situations, we always felt that we had a reasonable chance of fighting our way through them because the back-up bowling may not have been as strong as what it was in the past."

"If you look at the batting, I think it was a big blow for them Jimmy Adams not being here because he seems to bat very well with the lower order," Cronje said of the left-handed Jamaican. His tour was ended before it began after he cut the little finger on his right hand on the flight from London in a manner still to be properly explained.

"The figures suggested that they had three batters who were key and, even though those three made runs at certain times, we always felt we could get through the opening pair and do some damage with the new ball to those three," he went on.

South Africa also had the disappointment of defeat in their preceding series, losing 2-1 in England after leading 1-0 with two to play. So they had to regain their confidence in time for the West Indies series.

"We had a very tough chat with the UCB (the United Cricket Board) in Johannesburg before the (Wills International Trophy) tournament in Bangladesh where they expressed their feeling that we were a better side than the results had shown in the last two or three years," Cronje said.

"They let us know it was time for us players to realise the responsibility of wearing the green and gold of your country," he added. "You know, if you try your best and you still lose, you can't ask for more than that but they felt there were times that we really could have a little bit better."

"So far, it's worked for us. The players, I feel, have started realising that they can compete with the best in the world."

Source :: The Trinidad Express (https://www.trinidad.net/express/)