Guwahati, Oct 2 (IANS) As South Africa gear up for their opening fixture against England in the 2025 Women’s ODI World Cup, head coach Mandla Mashimbyi has called for his team to think like champions if they are to be winners of the eight-team competition.

The 13th edition of the 50-over global showpiece event is also the first World Cup campaign for Mashimbyi, who was appointed as South Africa’s head coach in December 2024. In the run-up to the World Cup, South Africa featured in a tri-series in Sri Lanka, before playing bilateral series against the West Indies and Pakistan.

“It’s been really good. The girls have really given it their all in terms of making sure that they’re ready for the first game. The work that we’ve put in before this week has been sufficient. Just going into the first game, I think the players just have to be positive and fresh from a mindset point of view and from a physical point of view as well.

“The big word here is trust. It’s for them to trust their abilities, trust their teammates, and just have some belief that they’re good enough. And sometimes to be a champion, you’ve got to think like one.”

“Once you start trusting your ability and trusting the work that you’ve put in, you’re halfway there as an individual, and then obviously, just to relate that to the whole team and make sure that when we actually take the field, everybody is on the same page,” said Mashimbyi in a statement by Cricket South Africa (CSA) on Thursday.

Asked about the team’s aspirations in this year’s World Cup, Mashimbyi said, “The ambition is probably the same as every team, to carry the trophy at the end of this tournament. What’s going to be important for us is to play every game on merit and take it game by game.”

“We’re looking to eat away at that elephant little by little, and that’s going to be key so that we don’t just create unnecessary pressure. The key is just to take it game by game and then just make sure we show up every game.”

The Proteas have shown steady progress in recent women’s ICC events, reaching the semi-finals of the last two 50-over World Cups and featuring in consecutive T20 World Cup finals in 2023 and 2024.

“I’m still me, to be honest with you,” Mashimbyi noted. “Given the fact that it’s my first World Cup, I think the best thing that I can do for this team is to be authentically me and just give what I can. Give them positive energy, and also just bring that calm mindset and also make them believe a little bit more.

“That’s what I’m here to do now. When it comes to skills and stuff like that, I think that’s taken care of. Now it’s just to make sure that the players are nice and positive throughout,” he concluded.

–IANS

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