SA’s dream still alive: Pollock

South Africa captain Shaun Pollock said on Friday that his team’s cricket World Cup dream was still alive despite their roller-coaster ...

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South Africa captain Shaun Pollock said on Friday that his team’s cricket World Cup dream was still alive despite their roller-coaster start to the tournament.

Pollock, speaking before Saturday’s Group B game against Bangladesh, conceded that the team had been despondent and all but expecting a first-round exit after losing two of their first three games.

But the mood changed when rivals West Indies dropped valuable points when one of their games was washed out. ‘‘In a funny way it’s prepared us as best as possible,’’ hetold reporters.

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‘‘We faced the exit door, we’ve been there and we know what the feeling’s like. So looking forward…there’s basically nothing to fear. The dream is still alive.’’

South Africa had been dependent on other results going their way to reach the Super Sixes after their defeats to West Indies and New Zealand. But when the West Indies’ game against Bangladesh was washed out on Tuesday, depriving Carl Hooper’s side of two points, South Africa knew they were virtually assured of progressing if they won their final three pool games.

‘‘The despondency in the squad was because our future in the tournament was out of our hands — we had to rely on someone else,’’ Pollock said. ‘‘Now that it’s back in our hands the guys are far more upbeat about things.’’

Pollock, whose wife Trish is pregnant with their first child, added: ‘‘As I’ve always said, looking too far ahead in the tournament is very dangerous. But if we play well in these next three games it will go a long way to helping us further on. There is the dream of going all the way but our focus is on getting into the Super Sixes and then taking it from there.’’

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Pollock said the team’s bad start had probably also had a salutary effect on their supporters. ‘‘The expectation in South Africa has probably dropped a little bit, which is also not a bad thing. We’re very conscious now of forgetting about the pressures and going out there and enjoying our cricket.’’

South Africa, who met Bangladesh in a one-day series for the first time in October and won all three matches comfortably, have not named an eleven for Saturday’s match in Bloemfontein. Despite widespread calls for him to be dropped, struggling fast bowler Allan Donald is expected to play in front of his hometown fans.

All rounders Andrew Hall and Robin Peterson are also likely to get a game as South Africa look to use all 15 squad members before the deciding pool game against Sri Lanka in Durban on March 3.

Bumpy ride ahead for the biggies

Weather permitting, the four matches slated for the weekend should be interesting. The Pakistan-England match promises an exciting fare, though the other three have obvious results in the offing.

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England v Pakistan
• If England win, they will have 12 points from four matches and go to third place
• Pakistan will stay on four points at fifth spot, and with India and Zimbabwe matches left, their chances of going through will diminish considerably
• But England’s chances of going through, though better, won’t improve hugely, with matches against India and Australia remaining, and the forfeited points against Zimbabwe
• If Pakistan win, as they should seeing England’s show against Namibia, they go up to eight points from three matches, the same as India and Zimbabwe
• Since Pakistan are yet to play the two, the second and third place fight will gather momentum
• From India’s point of view though, it’s best if England win, seeing that they promise less of a challenge than Pakistan

South Africa v Bangladesh
• If the weather intervenes in Bangladesh’s favour, South Africa’s Cup dreams will receive a further setback
• Though South Africa should win and go up by four points, the West Indies-Sri Lanka match will remain the most important in the group

West Indies v Canada
• If things go according to plan, the group standings will change, though not in any absolute sense
• SA would have beaten B’desh to move to eight; Kenya are already on eight; the Kiwis are on eight. West Indies will move to 10 points, just behind Sri Lanka on 12, but having played a game more than Lanka

India v Namibia
• If India win, as they should, they will go up to 12 points
• But India will move up depending on their comparative run rate with England and no absolute change in the group order will take place
• The England-Pakistan match, whose result will be known before this match, will be significant
• India will need to hike their net run rate substantially, having dipped via poor shows against Holland and Australia