Smith confident of thwarting Sri Lanka

Graeme Smith remembers well the pain of the World Cup exit against Sri Lanka four years ago, but with his team now ranked No.1 in the world, he insists that memories of that defeat won't be needed to inspire a winning start to the Super Eights at the Providence Stadium on Wednesday. South Africa made their task a little harder by losing to Australia in St Kitts, but with games against Ireland and Bangladesh to come after this one, Smith is confident that they can navigate a path to the last four.

"I remember it being a pretty sad day," said Smith when asked about that Durban exit. "I remember the disappointment on the guys' faces when we knew we weren't going through. To tie another game in the World Cup was massively disappointing. There are some guys who were part of those disappointments but this team is trying to set new standards. As important as it is to learn from your mistakes, it's important to generate your own personality and style and we've achieved that over a year and a half."

For three-fourths of the game against Australia, South Africa were well on course, with Smith leading the way. But once he started cramping up, the innings stalled and the vital carry-over points were lost. "Obviously, you'd love to start with two points," he said. "It makes things simpler. Not having those two points, you know what you need to do, which games you need to win."

The presence of two unfancied teams has certainly changed the situation, and Smith admitted as much. "It does make things more difficult," he said. "The big question on most of the other teams' minds will be whether Ireland or Bangladesh can upset anyone else. You can't take anyone for granted.

"What we've learnt from these tournaments is that nothing seems to go according to plan. We're just trying to keep our focus on this part of the tournament. If we can have a successful time in Guyana, it takes a lot of pressure off us heading to Grenada and Barbados."

The sternest test they face in Guyana will undoubtedly come from Sri Lanka, who drubbed Bangladesh and then brushed aside India to seal their place at cricket's top table. "We saw a little bit of them," said Smith. "They have some really talented cricketers and play well in these conditions. They're one of the teams to beat, as they were in the Champions Trophy."

That game was played in a fairly heated atmosphere, given Sri Lankan allegations of South African cowardice after they abandoned a tri-series also featuring India. But with a place in the semi-finals on the line, South Africa powered to a 78-run victory on the back of disciplined bowling from a five-pronged pace attack.

Smith though is wary of the threat that Sri Lanka pose, especially against the new ball. "They've got a pretty powerful batting line-up up front," he said. "They've got a lot of options in their bowling, a good bit of variety. We've played a lot of times and they've always been good close games. We've had our times and beaten them, and they've had theirs and beaten us."

With so much rain having fallen over the past week, there's also the possibility of a stop-start game on a new pitch whose behaviour no one's keen to predict. "It's something we have discussed," said Smith. "It's about getting 40 overs in over two days if the weather's going to carry on like this. It's pretty much out of your control.

"We've got a lot of options. Most of our guys are pretty comfortable with it [20-over cricket]. If that does happen, I'm sure we'll be able to adapt. Hopefully it won't reach that and we'll get a full game of cricket. I'm sure the people here want that. They've been waiting for this, and you can feel the vibe around the place."

Following the defeat to Australia, much was made of the manner in which Jacques Kallis batted for his 48, but Smith understandably didn't want to say anything too critical about a man whose batting has been the bedrock of recent success. "As we do after every game, win or lose, we debrief and discuss areas we can improve on," he said. "It was a hard thing for me to comment on at the time because I was with the doctor and the physio getting ready to get back out there. But Jacques is an experienced cricketer. He might have made a mistake, he might not have. You just have to make sure the same mistakes don't happen twice."

In hot and muggy Guyana, Smith himself will be doubly careful to avoid a repeat of what happened in St Kitts. "It was an unusual thing for myself," he said when asked about the cramp that afflicted him. "I've scored hundreds in these conditions and never been through that. It came as a surprise to me and the medical team. They've got me on a hydration process to make sure it doesn't happen again."

He was also asked for his views on happenings away from the field. With Bob Woolmer having coached South Africa in two World Cups, a question or two was understandable, but given the team's unhappy memories of the match-fixing era, Smith fervently hoped that such speculation wasn't true. "We get letters from the ACU [Anti Corruption Unit] all the time warning us how much will be bet on the tournament and all that stuff," he said. "I'm pretty comfortable that they're managing the game well. It's hard for me to talk of other teams. I can only talk of my own. The players respect the game and having been through what we have, it would be sad if there's any sort of spot-betting taking place."

Wednesday's match certainly looks too close to call, but after so many debacles in the past, South Africa are doubly determined to live up to their No.1 ranking. "We let ourselves down at times against Australia, but also played some superb cricket," said Smith. "The guys know that we're a quality team and the confidence is still right up there."

That self-belief has enabled South Africa to stitch together the run of results that took them past a slumbering Australia in the ICC Table. But on a pitch that looks like it could have been made in Colombo, South Africa's resolve will be severely tested and a Smith special might be just the clarion call that they need.