from supercricket.co.za April 10 2002
South African captain Shaun Pollock admitted that he and the rest of his side had felt the pressure of failing to live up to South Africa's high sporting standards as they tumbled to defeat after defeat at the hands of the Australians.
Pollock was speaking after finally clinching a win in the one-day series - a
65-run victory at a soggy Newlands on Tuesday night which staved off the
prospect of a series without a South African win. Australia took the seven match
tournament 5-1, with one game tied.
The cricket side's poor run of form has coincided with a slump in fortunes for
the nation's rugby sides in the Super 12, as well as a dodgy preparation period
for Bafana Bafana ahead of the World Cup in Korea and Japan later this year.
It's been hard for even the laid back Pollock to take.
"I'm frustrated because the Sharks aren't winning - that's a big
frustration for me," Pollock said. "I think in general people in South
Africa enjoy winning and we're a proud sporting nation. When the rugby aren't
winning, the soccer's not winning and the cricket's not winning then all of a
sudden guys are saying 'How can we enjoy a victorious beer after the game these
days'? So you can understand that people get frustrated.
"When I watch other games I feel the same," he said.
Pollock also underlined his belief that his side can bounce back to win the
World Cup on home territory next year.
"We definitely can. We've been through some tough times and shown some
character when things aren't so great. We do believe we can win the World Cup.
Australia definitely had the momentum and the form and confidence going into
this series and they're a difficult side to beat but in ten months time things
might be be going a bit differently, certain players might not be in such good
form and we might get a few lucky breaks. We can beat any side on our day."
The South African captain was particularly happy with the way his side came back
to win the last game of the series.
"It feels great to win won. We played well tonight and it was a good
performance all round. That's what you need if you're going to beat a quality
side like Australia. We were determined to play well and finish on a high note
and we managed to achieve that," Pollock said.