Skipper de Villiers banks on experience

South Africa captain AB de Villiers hopes his side’s experience of playing in rain-reduced matches in England will prove useful during the upcoming World Twenty20 in Sri Lanka.

The Proteas ended a largely successful tour of England with a 28-run defeat by the reigning World Twenty20 champions in a floodlit fixture at Edgbaston on Wednesday night where rain shortened the match to 11 overs per side.

“It certainly wasn’t our best performance... We were pretty much outplayed tonight,” said de Villiers after a defeat that saw England replace South Africa at number one in the international Twenty20 rankings.

“It was disappointing but there are a lot of positives to hang on to throughout this summer. We’ve played some good cricket and it’s not all doom and gloom going to Sri Lanka.”
De Villiers, asked what South Africa learnt from the brief encounters, replied: “Quite a lot actually. At this level you have to adapt no matter what situation you find yourself in.

“I hear there is quite a bit of rain around in Sri Lanka at the moment and we might get a few rain delayed games and it might cost you the World Cup (World Twenty20) if you are not prepared for it.

“We have played a couple now, one good, one not so good. We’ve had a taste for it and will be better prepared now.”