Cricket World Cup Fever
The Cricket World Cup 2007 is finally upon us, and every South African is getting ready to support the Proteas all the way to the finals. Amongst the favorites to walk away with the trophy, are Australia, New Zealand, Sri Lanka and South Africa. But that rating also changes everywhere you go and it is up to the teams to prove the devoted fan wrong. It doesn’t matter which team you support, it is a known fact that all eyes are on the South African Cricket Squad. Being the number one rated team in the world, they have become the favorites to make it to the semi-finals with relative ease and be strong contenders for the finals.
The opening ceremony of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2007, will take place on 11 March 2007, with South Africa playing their first match against the Netherlands on 16 March 2007. South Africa will then play Scotland on 20 March 2007 and face Australia on 24 March 2007. The South African team has been chosen and the fans have been preparing for months.
The South African Cricket team will be captained by Graeme Smith with Jacques Kallis as the vice captain for the Proteas. The rest of the team consists of Loots Bosman, Mark Boucher, Ab de Villiers, Herschelle Gibbs, Andrew Hall, Justin Kemp, Charl Langeveldt, Andrè Nel, Makhaya Ntini, Robin Peterson, Shaun Pollock, Ashwell Prince and Roger Telemachus. The management team for the South African squad is Mickey Arthur as coach, Goolam Rajah as manager, Vincent Barnes as assistant coach, Jonty Rhodes as fielding coach, Shane Jabaar as physiotherapist, Adrian le Roux as fitness trainer, Riaan Muller as masseur, Gustav Obermeyer as video analyst and Gordon Templeton as the media liaison.
Above are the names that will represent South Africa and every individual that proudly wears the South African flag on their cheeks, chests or entire bodies. The fans that have never failed to support their team and the enthusiasts that follow the Proteas with unconditional faith and belief. As the opening day to the ICC Cricket World Cup approaches, the nervousness, excitement and anticipation starts to build up and the dreams of the South African Cricket Team walking away as the winners of the Cricket World Cup 2007.
