The South African batsman, Hashim Amla reckons that being away from the game has made him “hungrier than ever before” ahead of his third World Cup. He missed the ODI series against Sri Lanka earlier this year as he was replaced by Aiden Markram, who played along with Quinton de Kock in the series.
Amla also missed the Indian Premier League (IPL) and he says the long break helped him to sharpen his game.
During a chat with ICC, Amla said, “Things happen that you don’t anticipate. I did not anticipate how things have gone recently. I have had time away and now I am really looking back to wearing the green and gold again. I am hungrier than ever before, there is no doubt about that. I have been blessed to have this shirt for a while, but the time off has made me want to come back stronger. This is my third (World Cup) so I know what it is all about. I have a strong record in England and I have always enjoyed coming here.”
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Amla has already featured in two World Cups for South Africa but on both the occasions, New Zealand ended their run – quarter-finals in 2011 and semi-finals four years ago. This year, they will be commencing their campaign against World No. 1 England and Amla believes the underdog status will suit South Africa.
Talking about the same, the veteran batsman said, “It is the best first game we could have asked for. We have played England recently and had some success against them, I have done well against them too. This year, you don’t see the same big names and that is why the focus is not on us but that has some good in it.
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He further added, “There has not been much chat about us winning in comparison to the past, but I don’t think that played a part in how we performed. At the end of the day, we always gave our best and played to win. The fact there has not been a lot of chat at this World Cup means there is less expectation but in the team, we think we can do well.”
