Captaincy forcing Wolvaardt to look at bigger picture

It’s still early days but Laura Wolvaardt thinks captaincy may prove useful for her batting, though not in a way some might think. 

Wolvaardt is one of the most talented players in the world and arguably the best in South Africa, but her love of batting can be suffocating.

“Sometimes I sit in the hotel room and think about my batting too much,” she said.

She’s not alone in that regard. Many of the great players were known to spend the majority of the day just thinking about batting and famously in the case of Australian Steve Smith, he had his wife throwing balls at him in hotel passages.

Wolvaardt has been forced to get out of her own head because she now captains the Proteas, a job that is still temporary, with the 24-year-old still weighing up how it affects her game and most importantly if it will negatively affect her batting.

That is a process that will conclude once the series with New Zealand, which starts in Potchefstroom on Sunday, ends. 

“In a way the captaincy has almost helped (my batting), in that it makes me think about my batting a bit less and made me think about conditions, what we need to do and that will help me as a cricketer in the long run,” said Wolvaardt

South Africa’s results since Wolvaardt took over the captaincy from her good friend Sune Luus, have been mixed.

The team lost a closely contested T20 series with Pakistan 3-0, but bounced back to win a crucial ODI series 2-1. 

Wolvaardt performed better with the bat in the T20s than in the ODIs, but she knows the sample size regarding the effects the captaincy has had on her batting is still too small to properly analyse. 

South Africa go into the three ODIs against the Kiwis confident after that success in Pakistan, though Wolvaardt highlighted areas that still demanded attention.

“For this series it is about finding more consistency in all three departments. We showed glimpses of it and we need it to all come together on the same day. Our fielding is another area we have talked about, and we must do a lot better in the field in this series.”

New Zealand last played six weeks ago, losing to Sri Lanka, but Wolvaardt said a side containing experienced players like Sophie Devine and Suzie Bates still demands respect. 

“New Zealand is a quality side, these conditions will also suit them — they like the ball coming on to the bat and they have a lot of world class batters.”

The return of Chloe Tryon, who asked to be excused from the Pakistan tour, bolsters the Proteas' middle order batting and will also give Wolvaardt an extra option with the ball.

“She’s a world class player who is in really good form at the moment as well. Chloe will make a big difference, she’s been bowling really well and the spin options will be important throughout the series,” said Wolvaardt.

The series forms part of the ICC Women’s Championship, which will decide the five automatic qualifiers for the 2025 World Cup.