Danni Wyatt: England opener eyeing T20 World Cup glory following on from WPL ‘heartbreak’ | Cricket News

England opener Danni Wyatt says she is focused on winning the Women’s T20 World Cup with England and wants to be “heartbroken” by the lack of a Women’s Premier League deal.

England face the host South Africa in the semi-final stage on Saturday, hoping to secure a place in the final on Saturday, and Wyatt came to the contest in good form, after hitting a quick 59 from 33 balls when England sent T20 Cup-record. score 213-5 in a 114-run thrashing of Pakistan on Saturday.

Wyatt shared in a 74-run partnership with Nat Sciver-Brunt (81 not out off 40 balls), who continued his sparkling form for the tournament with his second half-century.

Sciver-Brunt was sold for £320,000 in the first WPL auction earlier this month – the highest price among overseas players for the India-based competition – while Wyatt was surprised not to sell, but the 31-year-old batter was full of praise. for his friends.

“I don’t think there’s anything he can’t do – he’s hitting the ball like a beach ball at the minute,” Wyatt said of Sciver-Brunt.

“I enjoyed batting with Nat. He is very smart, very adaptable and hopefully we can carry him into the final with some big runs in the next game.

“He’s as cool as a cucumber, our Nat, nothing bothers him, even when he’s grown up [WPL] pay for another day’s package. Everyone really looked up to him.”

Regarding his own disappointment at not getting a WPL deal, Wyatt said: “It’s been an exciting few days.

“I’m very disappointed, obviously, to have been part of the IPL exhibition match … and I love playing cricket in India. It’s one of the best places to play cricket.

“Not a single offer is exciting enough, but this is life and my focus is only on this World Cup.

“The sun still comes up the next day.”

He added: “The girls rallied around me, which was great. It’s a credit to everyone in our squad – even the staff.

“Obviously some people get what they want, some people don’t. I’m just proud of the way everyone handles it. I definitely feel the love.”

England go into Friday’s semi-finals as favourites, having completed the group stage with a 100 per cent record and four wins out of four. They have also won their last four encounters against South Africa in women’s T20 internationals.

Wyatt, pleased with the contribution against Pakistan after a slow start to the tournament on a personal level, emphasized that England will again look to play at home and take the game to the hosts in Cape Town.

“T20 cricket is very up and down,” he said. “Especially as an opener, it can be brutal.

“You just have to believe in yourself, keep going and keep bringing it to them. It can be easy, if you fail a few times, to go out there and just beat it, but I told myself to keep going. be brave and start the team well .

“We’ve been given license at the top of the order to move from ball one. We’ve got the depth in the order to allow us to do that too – although it’s going to be a difficult situation, we’re still going to keep going.

“Everyone feels confident and, more importantly, very cool. Semi-finals, at the business end of the tournament, it’s very important to be calm and smart in the way you go out and play.

“We are all ready. These moments don’t happen very often; you have to embrace today, show the world what you can do and what you will do.

The South African captain said the hosts will never lose

Meanwhile, South Africa captain Sune Luus says his side have “no one to lose” as they look to book a place in the World Cup finals for the first time – and at home.

With England heading into the knockout stages, South Africa need a shock win over Bangladesh on Tuesday to book their place.

“There is no pressure for us, we can go out and enjoy the moment and try and do our best,” Luus told reporters.

“It’s been hard to get here. We’re still looking for the perfect game where all aspects click and work together.”

Luus added: “He is [England] playing a very offensive brand but that can play to our advantage. After losing the goal, they continued to play aggressively so they created chances for us.

“We also need to play attacking cricket from the start of the game.”

South Africa have won just three of their 23 T20 internationals against England, with the last coming in Perth at the most recent World Cup, three years ago.

They have reached the semi-finals of the last two 50-over World Cups and reached the last four in the previous T20 tournament in 2020. They have five semi-final appearances in total in two World Cup formats without reaching the final. .

“We’ve been on the opposite side so many times, we know how it feels [to lose at this stage]”Luus added. “That gives us enough motivation to go out there and just be happy with nothing to lose.

“We have to stay focused on the basics and do the simple things right. That will give us the best chance.”

Watch England face South Africa in the semi-final of the Women’s T20 World Cup, live on Sky Sports Cricket. Coverage starts from 12.30pm, with the first ball bowled at 1pm.