Aiden Markram addresses the media ahead of the match on Monday at 16:30 between South Africa and Bangladesh in the T20 World Cup.
[Reporter:]
That was very, very tense. I mean, I imagine there’s a feeling of enormous relief to just get the two points.
[Aiden Markram:]
Yeah, good relief. I think you can almost sort of expect that on a surface like that and an outfield like that – 100 runs can always feel a long way away, especially when you don’t get off to the start that you’d like. So, it is a massive relief to get the two points but also for two batters to show us how it’s done on a wicket like that and for the rest of us as a unit to hear about it and take some lessons from that.
[Reporter:]
Can you explain just why it’s so hard to score runs? I mean, the outfield is obviously very, very slow, but the pitch is, I mean, like, for a hundred to be competitive, it would normally be sort of unplayable, but it doesn’t… Why is it so hard to score runs?
[Aiden Markram:]
I think from a fielding point of view you can really squeeze; you can be nice and close so normally when you’re hitting it nicely off the bat it sort of beats the inner ring, but I feel like here it doesn’t. Obviously, the pitch was quite slow today as well, so that makes it even tougher to get it through the ring and at least get a partnership built. That’s probably the reasons why it’s tough. I think if you look at it from a going sideways point of view, it’s probably a bit less today actually so that was nice for us as batters to see and feel but still really challenging to score and put bowlers under pressure.
[Reporter:]
We’re supposed to be talking about Bangladesh, sorry. So that’s two points there and that’s Super 8s wrapped up. That’d be nice to go to St Vincent with that.
[Aiden Markram:]
Yeah, that would be fantastic. Yeah, that’s sort of the first box that we want to tick. But again, you look at conditions, you look at a really strong Bangladesh team and it’s going to be a proper challenge for us. So naturally looking forward to it. We’ve luckily had the privilege of playing two games now on the surface and at this venue so hopefully It can give us even clearer plans and we can develop plans from a batting point of view how to get to a score of maybe about 140 if we do bat first and hopefully then our bowlers can do the rest.
[Reporter:]
Can I just ask you about Ottniel and Anrich Nortje? Obviously Anrich had a fairly torrid IPL and there were question marks, probably just outside the team rather than inside the team, about his form. So, a word about how dynamic he’s been and also, Ottniel, nobody can score a run against him.
[Aiden Markram:]
Yeah, the both of them have been fantastic. You look at Anna, maybe the build up to the World Cup, he would have liked to have done better, potentially come with more confidence. But we had him just before his massive injury, and he was, at that time, probably one of the best bowlers in the world. I don’t think that changes, I think just a bit of backing and a bit of game time naturally to get that rust out. And then naturally a wicket where there’s a bit for him to work with at least helps. The both of them have done really well. Ottniel is really clear, keeps things really simple, got a nice skill set and that’s what they back. So, it’s great to see it’s worked for the two of them, not just the two of them, probably the whole bowling attack so far. But us as a changing room, it’s great to have a Anrich Nortje firing and full of confidence.
[Reporter:]
And finally, for me, are you able to follow the tournament in six or seven countries and different continents, different times of the day? Or are you just going to wait and look at that later and just focus on your own stuff?
[Aiden Markram:]
Yeah, each to their own I guess, but I’ll probably just rest up and if I can catch a few overs here and there then potentially watch it. But it sort of just makes your analysis in building into game day quite important. You get as much information as you can and see sort of what happens from there.
[Reporter:]
How did you guys enjoy the crowd attendance at this venue so far?
[Aiden Markram:]
It’s been really cool. I didn’t probably expect as many people to turn up, so it’s been fantastic to see. I think there’s proof that there’s quite a few South Africans that are living this side now – so for them to come out in their numbers get behind us in in games that Maybe are a different type of entertaining. It’s not your usual boundaries and ball flying everywhere but to turn up back us ultimately as a team and us representing them has been quite cool to see them pull out in their numbers here at the stadium.
[Reporter:]
And besides all the talk about the pitch, what is your impression of this venue as a whole?
[Aiden Markram:]
It’s a beautiful venue. You always have to think back and think in February it was basically under snow I believe and for them to put up a field in a stadium that looks like this is a fantastic effort. It all makes sense while the pitch is playing that way, it’s still really fresh and just needs a bit of traffic and some time. But all in all, as a venue, it’s been really cool. The training facilities are beautiful. And I think once everything sort of settles down and they get that time, it’s going to be a fantastic place to play cricket.
[Reporter:]
And finally, Bangladesh always come with a massive amount of fans and a lot of fanfare. How do you guys keep that noise out and just concentrate on the job at hand?
[Aiden Markram:]
Yeah, there will be lots of Bangladesh supporters, I’m sure. I think we’ve been doing it now for long enough that it’s almost second nature. You just zone into what’s happening inside the boundary ropes and putting a lot of focus on that. A crowd cheering obviously will give away a lot of which team has the momentum. So, if they’re pretty quiet, then it means we’re doing well. So, we’ll drive that message and try to keep the crowd as quiet as we can.
