By Liryn de Jager.
With people from all over the world descending on South Africa to participate in and attend the 2023 Netball World Cup, Acting President Paul Mashatile officially declared the tournament open during a ceremony in Cape Town.
Fifth-ranked South Africa got their Netball World Cup 2023 campaign under way on a winning note when they beat ninth-ranked Wales 61-50 in front of a packed CTICC in Cape Town on Friday.
This was the fourth World Cup meeting between the countries, with South Africa winning all of them. In their last meeting in 2015 in Sydney, the score was 68-40.
Coach Norma Plummer decided to put her faith in the youngsters with Ine-Marie Venter and Elmeré van den Bergh starting in the goal circle and the more experienced Lenize Potgieter on the bench.
At the other end of the court was the experienced defending duo of Karla Pretorius and Phumza Maweni. Pretorius was playing in her 99th test.
Despite it taking the Proteas a while to find their feet, once they got the rhythm going, they moved with speed and agility through the court.
Venter occupied the goal circle well and shot with accuracy. Van den Bergh missed her first few chances and seemed rattled by the big stage.
South Africa pulled away at the end of the first quarter, much to the frustration of the Welsh with even their shooters blown up for persistent contact.
Upped the Tempo
Pretorius was in great form, putting on full display why she was player of the tournament four years ago in Liverpool.
Two minutes before halftime, her defensive partner Maweni created an unbelievable turnover, literally throwing her body on the line and flying across the court.
The Proteas led 32-24 at halftime and Plummer must have thought it too close for comfort. Jeante Strydom earned her first international cap for South Africa when she replaced Shadine van der Merwe while Van den Bergh moved to the bench with Nichole Taljaard coming on.
Taljaard and Van den Bergh definitely combined better in the goal circle and the former was also more accurate at goal.
Nicola Smith took over the goal defence position for the final quarter as Pretorius got a well-deserved break, no doubt being rested for Sunday’s big one against Jamaica.
Smith grabbed her opportunity to shine and gave Welsh goal shooter Ella Powell-Davies little room to move.
In the final minutes, South Africa finally started pulling away. They used their status as one of the most experienced teams at the World Cup (in terms of international caps) and upped the tempo to completely shut out the Welsh and clinch an important victory on the first day of action.
Ine-Marie Venter
Goal Shooting Percentage: South Africa 84.7 per cent / Wales 89.3 per cent
South Africa 73 / Wales 36
Quarter scores: 18-9 / 32-24 / 47-37 / 61-50.
Details on tickets and travel packages and more information on the Netball World Cup 2023 are all available on the official tournament website (www.nwc2023.org.za) with a range of tickets and packages still on offer.
The National Joint Operational and Intelligence Structure (NatJOINTS) assured participants and the public that plans are in place to ensure a safe and secure 2023 Netball World Cup.