South Africa will play in the opening match of the tournament on Friday when they host Afghanistan at the Diamond Oval in Kimberley.

A total of 16 teams will be battling it out over the next couple of weeks in Bloemfontein, Kimberley, Potchefstroom and Benoni.

As the host nation, there is a certain level of pressure and expectation on South Africa to perform at the tournament which gets played every two years.

The captain, Bryce Parsons, has welcomed the pressure and feels that although they didn’t perform all that well during the recent quad series, they are ready to meet the challenge.

“There is definitely a little bit of pressure, but as a side, we see pressure as a privilege and we’ve kind of just taken that in our stride during our preparations. We know the grounds and we know what is coming our way. We are just really excited to get the tournament underway.

“We have been a bit inconsistent as a side, but there have been positives. Our top order has done really well. Our boys have been really good and there has been a lot of good things from our performances. It is just the consistency that has lacked a little.”

The team has been boosted with the return of the VKB Knights fast bowler, Gerald Coetzee, who has recovered from his grade one hamstring strain and will be playing in his second World Cup.

In 2018, Coetzee was named as one of three South Africans in the team of the tournament in New Zealand. The others are his Knights teammates, Raynard van Tonder and Wandile Makwetu.

Parsons added that the return of the 19-year-old Coetzee is a big boost to their bowling attack, which he considers to be their big strength.

“Our main strength is definitely our bowling attack. We’ve got exciting quicks like Gerald Coetzee, who did really well in the Mzansi Super League for the Jozi Stars before he got injured. He has come back from that injury and he is looking really good.”

Play at the Diamond Oval is scheduled to start at 10:00 on Friday morning.

@MorganPiek OFM Sport