Photo Credit: ICC
Ice-cool Nat Sciver-Brunt could be the calming influence England need in their semi-final showdown with South Africa, according to Danni Wyatt.
Sciver-Brunt top scored with 81 from just 40 balls as England sealed their place at the top of Group 2 with an emphatic 114-run victory over Pakistan on Tuesday, Wyatt chipping in with a rapid 59 herself in a record ICC Women’s T20 World Cup score of 213 for five.
Since securing their semi-final spot, the England squad have indulged in some sightseeing, an experience which for many proved rather more stressful than it should have been.
“There were a few technical issues that made me very nervous before we boarded the cable car,” said Wyatt.
“It decided to drop a little bit and swing, it was a very terrifying experience.
“But Nat was as cool as a cucumber, nothing fazes her.
“She’s very chilled and that permeates across the team. Everyone really looks up to Nat and I’m just so glad she’s on our team.
“She’s hitting the ball like a beach ball at the minute. So hopefully she can keep that up and never change.”
Sciver-Brunt finished the group stage as the tournament’s top-scorer, with 176 runs including two fifties.
Asked whether the all-rounder could challenge for Player of the Tournament, Wyatt said: “She’s definitely up there, isn’t she?
“It’s the business end of the tournament now, so hopefully she can keep up the good form and get some good runs over the next couple of games.”
Wyatt will also enter the semi-final with confidence having made a timely return to form against Pakistan, recording her first half-century of the competition as a reminder of her talents.
“T20 cricket is so up and down,” she said.
“Especially as an opener, it can be brutal at times. You have just got to believe in yourself and just keep going, keep taking it to them.
“It can be easy if you fail a few times to go out there and knock it around.
“But I just said to myself, ‘I’m just going to carry on being brave, be smart and get the team off to a good start.’
“I’m really happy with the way I performed.”
Having come through the group stages with a perfect record, England head into their tie with South Africa as favourites to make Sunday’s final.
But Wyatt insists her side are feeling relaxed as they look to spoil the Proteas’ party.
“I think the pressure is all on South Africa,” she said.
“It’s the home World Cup for them. We are just going to keep doing what we are doing.
“It’s going to be really important to stay calm and just enjoy each other’s company and just go out there and back ourselves.”
Name of Author: ICC
The International Cricket Council (ICC) is the global governing body for cricket, founded in 1909 as the Imperial Cricket Conference. Renamed the International Cricket Conference in 1965, it became the ICC in 1987. Headquartered in Dubai, UAE, the ICC has 108 member nations.
