De Villiers wary of Australian backlash
South Africa captain AB de Villiers remained wary of an Australian unit eager to right the wrongs incurred during last week's historic defeat to Zimbabwe, ahead of Tuesday's key tri-series fixture at the Harare Sports Club.
South Africa captain AB de Villiers remained wary of an Australian unit eager to right the wrongs incurred during last week's historic defeat to Zimbabwe, ahead of Tuesday's key tri-series fixture at the Harare Sports Club.
All-rounder Elton Chigumbura's cool, calm and collected saw the tournament hosts beat the Aussies in this format of the international game for the first time in 31 years.
The Australians have since slipped from first position to fourth in the International Cricket Council's ODI rankings – and will be without captain Michael Clarke for the rest of the tour. Clarke has been sidelined by a recurring hamstring injury.
"It was an interesting game of cricket. We are obviously happy for our neighbours, Zimbabwe. They played a good game of cricket and to get a win like that is rewarding for them," said de Villiers.
"It opens up the tournament a little bit, anything can still happen, so we will need to play a good game of cricket against Australia to make sure we book our spot in the final.
The participation of fast bowler Morne Morkel and batsman JP Duminy, meanwhile, remained in the balance 24 hours prior to Tuesday's encounter. Morkel sustained a shoulder injury recently, while Duminy is nursing a hurt left knee.
"We all know that Zimbabwe is a dangerous team, especially in this format of the game. That is the nature of the game, if you are not on top of your game or in good form you bring a team like Zimbabwe into play," added de Villiers.
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