Proteas' secret weapon providing inspiration for CWC25 final
A new belief from a fresh voice is giving South Africa hope they can break the duck in the final of the Women's Cricket World Cup.
South Africa coach Mandla Mashimbyi is providing his players with the belief they can create history and win a first ICC Women's Cricket World Cup title.
Mashimbyi only took the top job towards the end of last year when he was named successor to long-time coach Hilton Moreeng, but the 44-year-old has already made a massive impact on South Africa's players.
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As a former first-class fast bowler in South Africa, Mashimbyi has been a driving force behind the Proteas' run to the Women's World Cup Final against India as South Africa dream of an inaugural women's ICC trophy after a brace of near misses at the two most recent editions of the ICC Women's T20 World Cup.
Mashimbyi recently outlined that his coaching philosophy centered around 'wanting to speak to the person rather than the cricketer' and this left a large impression on star all-rounder Marizanne Kapp, who credited the new South Africa coach with her match-winning performance against England in the semi-finals.
"I have to give a lot of credit to Mandla," Kapp said after her five-wicket haul in the semis.
"I feel like since he has come on board (I have had) just has a different outlook on the game.
"I've always been so focused on wanting to win a World Cup.
"Having these girls around, having team management around and then family, especially if it doesn't go your way, they’re always there, no matter what the outcome.
"And that's really special. Just knowing I can go back to family."
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South Africa all-rounder Marizanne Kapp lead from the front with the ball taking five wickets to become the most prolific bowler in Women's Cricket World Cup history.
It's not just belief that Mashimbyi has instilled in South Africa's talented group, with Kapp revealing some of his team talks at training had provided further inspiration in their recent winning run.
"Initially in our first net session, all of our batters probably lost like 10 wickets in the first two overs we faced and then the coach just called us in and said, listen, just put a price in your wickets," Kapp recalled.
"Even at yesterday's meeting (prior to the semi-finals), I feel like coach Mandla actually made us feel relaxed because we had a totally different meeting with him.
"Just the way he's been going about his business, everything was just different from that moment on.
"And I feel like this morning or this afternoon when we arrived here, everyone just looked so relaxed. So, it was a completely different camp.
"We didn't really speak about the game too much. We obviously knew what we had to do and luckily for us it went our way today."
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Making sure the Proteas are relaxed and primed for the World Cup final will be one of Mashimbyi's toughest tasks on Sunday in Navi Mumbai, but the young coach wants his players to embrace the moment and use any nerves heading into the match to their advantage.
"Nerves are innate with us as beings," the coach noted.
"We need to understand that nerves are our ally, not our enemy.
"It’s important to feel nervous because it shows you care.
"But it’s also about embracing them and actually using the energy for good.
"Use the energy to elevate yourself and not cut your legs off.”
