South Africa have to raise the bar bit more, says Chloe Tryon ahead of series against Australia

SYDNEY: South Africa women’s all-rounder Chloe Tryon believes the visitors need to raise their bar a little bit more in their upcoming all-format series against Australia. South Africa are touring Australia from January 27 to February 18 for three T20Is, three ODIs, as well as a one-off Test match.

“I love the area. I love the place. There are really good cricket facilities and you’re playing the best in the world. It’s been a while since we’ve had a series against them, so it’s really exciting. A lot of youngsters are coming in with a lot of experience from the older ones. It’s going to be a nice tour and a challenging one for us.”

“Quality for sure. You’re playing the number one team in the world. So obviously you want to be playing your best. We have to raise the bar a little bit more and make sure we’re playing at 200%. We know they’re going to come hard at us, especially with a T20 World Cup around the corner. It’s going to be really good prep for us,” said Chloe in a statement issued by Cricket South Africa (CSA).

Chloe last appeared for South Africa in the team’s successful home tour against New Zealand in October last year, helping the Proteas secure a 2-1 ODI series win before the T20Is ended in a 1-1 draw.

During her campaign for the Sydney Sixers in the 2023 Women’s Big Bash League (WBBL) in Australia, Chloe sustained a groin injury that ruled her out of the national side’s home-soil encounters against Bangladesh last month.

“It’s been really good. I worked through the whole of December back home at the Wanderers. I got to work every single day to get my hip nice and strong. Everything’s really good and I’m happy to be here and be cleared completely. I am really excited to be part of a big series,” she said on her recovery from the injury.

Asked about her personal goals and the team’s targets on this tour, Chloé emphasised on the importance of the Proteas ensuring excellence in all departments against an Australia team which won ODI and T20I series on their multi-format tour of India earlier this month.

“It’s all about game time. It’s been a while, with the last series I played being against New Zealand. We have to make sure that we’re doing the right things, playing our own game, good brand of cricket, and making sure our fielding is on par. As you can see, Australia is a very strong side and they do well in the field. So we need to make sure in all departments we’re firing,” she stated.

She also highlighted the importance of staying calm and focusing on the present moment during the tour. “It’s always tough to beat a team like that. It’s about staying nice and calm, taking every moment as it comes. You don’t want to think too far ahead in the game. We’ve seen how they’ve played teams.”

“If we can just stay nice and calm in everything that we do, I think we can take it to the end and make sure we stay in the moment as much as we can. And hopefully, we can get to the end and win,” concluded Chloe.