After surprising themselves and the South African public by qualifying for the final of the previous T20 Women's World Cup, the Proteas believe they can go one better than in 2023 because theyre a more mature outfit.
Laura Wolvaardts team have shown little in the past 18 months since losing the final in front of a packed Newlands to Australia to suggest they are capable of making a similar run in the UAE next month.
However, with 11 of the 15 players who were in the squad last year returning for the ninth edition of the tournament, the choice of the word mature to explain why SA could go one step further than they did in Cape Town is, at face value, understandable.
There is greater belief and they have a new DNA, which emerged from them making it to the final, said director of cricket, Enoch Nkwe.
The performances in the last week of the tournament boosted publicity for the womens game, and more generally raised expectations about what Wolvaardts side could do in the UAE.
