West Indies batting coach Floyd Reifer on Wednesday brushed apart options of a looming six-hitting shootout towards South Africa, asserting that his facet’s focus stays on maximising scoring alternatives relatively than merely clearing the ropes of their essential T20 World Cup conflict in Ahmedabad.
With each unbeaten groups filled with some great power-hitters, there’s an expectation of a high-scoring contest however Reifer stated the Caribbean facet’s method goes past boundary-hitting.
“Each groups have the power to hit sixes and as soon as the wicket is nice, you count on good batting performances from each side. For us, it’s about scoring off as many deliveries as potential. Sure, we hit sixes and fours, however the principle factor is to attain as many balls as potential,” Reifer stated through the pre-match press convention.
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The previous West Indies captain made it clear that his group doesn’t really feel the necessity to show some extent regardless of coming into the event amid modest expectations.
“There’s no level to show for us. We got here right here with a optimistic mentality to win video games. Each match we play, we plan to go in and win. That has been our mindset from the beginning,” he stated.
West Indies is on the cusp of a semifinal berth after a string of spectacular performances, and Reifer credited the group’s collective effort relatively than particular person brilliance.
“Once you have a look at our group, now we have high quality batters all through. It’s not about one or two gamers. In each sport, totally different guys have stepped up and put in performances. That consistency is the signal of batting unit,” he famous.
On whether or not event dynamics are likely to convey the very best out of the Caribbean facet, Reifer stated the world stage naturally evokes gamers.
“It’s a World Cup. Everyone desires to carry out on this stage the place everyone seems to be watching. Our vitality is nice, the blokes are having fun with enjoying with one another and celebrating one another’s success. That’s essential in a group setup,” he stated.
South Africa, which has performed most of its matches at this venue, could take pleasure in familiarity with circumstances, however Reifer downplayed that side.
“They’ve the benefit of enjoying most of their video games right here, however for us, it’s about planning correctly and executing our plans. We’re not too nervous about venues or who has performed the place. It’s about understanding what must be finished on the day and doing it,” he added.
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A number of West Indies gamers have featured in franchise leagues reminiscent of SA20 and bilateral sequence in South Africa, giving them publicity to Proteas bowlers. Nonetheless, Reifer insisted previous encounters will depend for little.
“In worldwide cricket, groups know one another effectively. It’s about who plans higher and executes higher on the day,” he stated.
Requested if South Africa is essentially the most balanced facet within the competitors and whether or not the competition might boil all the way down to West Indies’ batting versus Proteas’ bowling, Reifer maintained that every one groups within the event are evenly matched.
“They’ve a balanced group, now we have a balanced group as effectively. All groups right here have high quality gamers. It comes all the way down to which group executes higher below stress,” he stated.
On the evolving nature of T20 batting and the relevance of an anchor’s position, Reifer stated readability of roles throughout phases of the innings is extra essential than labels.
“The sport has developed. Groups are scoring 200 and 230-plus recurrently. Every participant has a job in numerous phases. It’s about understanding and executing these roles. That’s what we’ve been doing effectively up to now,” he stated.
Printed on Feb 25, 2026