It’s all about making good decisions under pressure: Aiden Markram

KOLKATA: Aiden Markram is standing tall for South Africa and is leading the side from the front in this T20 World Cup. However, the skipper is not ready to take all credit for the side’s great show.

“I’m just fortunate to lead a really strong team,” Markram said on Tuesday. “It’s a great mix of some young guys and the older ones with a lot of experience. You lean on them and they help guide you and lead you when you have a few doubts.”



Talking about the captaincy, the left-hander said, “I think it’s more about making really good decisions under pressure. Quinny (Quinton de Kock) reads conditions really well from behind the stumps and that makes a massive difference for us.”

The 31-year-old SA skipper, who has a strike rate of 175.16 in this tournament, said he approaches his role as a batter differently from that of a captain. “A little bit that I’ve learned from this World Cup and the more recent months is to make a proper effort to separate the two roles. If you do your job as a batter for the team, ultimately it will contribute, hopefully, in a winning cause,” he said.

Markram, however, felt their win against New Zealand earlier in the tournament is a thing od the past. “I wish cricket was that easy,” he smiled. “It’s a completely fresh start and it is a semifinal. I don’t think it’s as straightforward as being able to repeat that again.”

‘Kiwis used to underdog tag’

His Kiwi counterpart Mitchell Santner, however, has no issues going into the high-voltage clash as underdogs. “Well, we’ve had that tag for a long time, so we’re kind of used to it,” he said.

The left-arm spinner is ready to learn from their earlier defeat against the same opposition. “I think they have all bases covered, and that’s why they’re undefeated in this tournament. We’re just going to go out there and try to put some pressure on them at different stages of the game,” Santner said.

Dew might come to play a role later in the match but Santner didn’t seem too worried. “Whatever you do first, if you do it well, you put yourself in a pretty good position,” he said.


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