South Africa fast bowler Kagiso Rabada admitted he "wasn't up to scratch" in a disappointing time at the T20 World Cup last month in Australia. In the tournament where South Africa lost to Netherlands by 13 runs to make a shock exit from the race to the semi-finals, Rabada had a forgettable time.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
He was their most expensive bowler (9.44 economy rate and averaged 75.5), and took fewest wickets (two) among their frontline fast-bowlers. He added that unimpressive performance in the T20 World Cup was also down to trying to push despite fatigue and led to the opposite reaction on his mind and body.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
"I am not one to make any excuses - I wasn't up to scratch, I had a disappointing tournament. I didn't feel that great in terms of energy. I still tried my best but I felt like the harder I tried, it just wasn't coming out. You can feel it in the intensity of your play."<\/p>\r\n\r\n
"Your intensity is not where you want it to be, and it catches up with you over time. Playing international cricket, you want to be rather high-intensity more often than not," he was quoted as saying by ESPNCricinfo ahead of South Africa's departure for their three-match Test series in Australia.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
This was second successive time that South Africa crashed out of T20 World Cup in the Super 12 stage, a problem which Rabada feels has to be solved ahead of the 2024 edition, to be held in West Indies and USA. South Africa last entered a semi-final of T20 World Cup in 2014.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
"If it's happened twice (after the group-stage exit in 2021 too), it's something that seriously needs to be considered. That's what I have realised, and [the] management have realised as well. We need to come up with some plans - not just for me, but for all players," he added.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Rabada had been rested from playing in domestic first-class matches ahead of the Test tour to Australia to manage his workload. He conceded that player workload is an issue in the current cricketing landscape. "It is a concern with the amount of cricket that's being played. It needs to be managed. There need to be plans to be made accordingly."<\/p>\r\n\r\n
He was also unsure of how Australian pitches, known traditionally for their pace and bounce, would behave after the hosts posted 598\/4 against West Indies in their first Test of home summer.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
"It's a game of cricket. As much as the nerves and passion comes in - which is incredibly important - it's a game of cricket. It's not as intimidating as people make it out to be. It can sound much more intimidating than it actually is."<\/p>\r\n\r\n
He was also unsure of how Australian pitches, known traditionally for their pace and bounce, would behave after the hosts posted 598\/4 against West Indies in their first Test of home summer.<\/p>\r\n\r\n