Mandla Mashimbyi calls on Proteas Women's batters to convert starts into hundreds

Centuries are the currency of any batter, and Proteas Women’s coach Mandla Mashimbyi has expressed his disappointment in his team’s failure to do so on the recent tour of New Zealand. 

None of the Proteas batters were able to cross the three-figure mark in either white-ball series, resulting in a 4-1 T20I and 2-1 ODI series defeats.

Anneke Bosch made a successful return to the Proteas team after missing the home summer by registering the visitors’ top individual score of the ODI series with 91 in the second ODI in Wellington. 

Captain Laura Wolvaardt also made two half-centuries in three ODIs, but even the skipper would have been disappointed with her return having been dismissed for 69 on two occasions.

Overall, six Proteas made half-centuries, including Annerie Derksen’s 72 during the ODIs, but this was not enough in comparison to two career-bests from Amelia Kerr (179 not out) and Maddy Green (141 not out) for the White Ferns. 

Equally, in the T20Is, Tazmin Brits and Dercksen were the only South African batters to make half-centuries, which Kerr bettered with struck 105 in Christchurch.

This was in contrast to the home summer when Wolvaardt struck two centuries against Ireland along with Sune Luus’ ton.

"I think from an individual point of view, yes [some batters did well], but I think from a partnership point of view, I think we could have done a lot better," Mashimbyi said.

"Quite disappointed that we don't have hundreds. We normally pride ourselves in scoring hundreds, so the whole tour we didn't get a hundred. 

"We're normally the team that actually scores hundreds, and this time around we didn't do that. So, it just shows when you don't get partnerships, it's not going to get you hundreds." 

The Proteas do not play an ODI series for some time with the focus shifting to the shorter T20I format. 

Current ODI world champions India arrive in South Africa within a fortnight for a five-match T20I series which form part of the final preparations for the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup in the UK later this year.