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Canberra, March 2
South African fast bowler Dale Steyn plays his 100th One-day International on Tuesday looking to regain top form despite being distracted by mountain fires raging near his home in Cape Town.
“Massive fire behind my house in Stonehurst! Plz be safe and watch out for the mountain animals trying to escape it, porcupines, tortoises.” Steyn tweeted.
Teammate Faf du Plessis had the same worries too, tweeting “Crazy mountain fire near my new house. Hope they can stop the fire before it does more damage.” Steyn was slated to address the pre-match press conference ahead of Tuesday’s Pool B match against Ireland at the Manuka Oval in Canberra, but was replaced by Farhaan Behardien at the last minute.
The 31-year-old Steyn, who was down with flu a few days before the start of the World Cup, has managed just one wicket in each of South Africa’s first three matches against Zimbabwe, India and the West Indies.
There are small pickings for one of the most destructive fast bowlers in the modern game and Steyn will be needed to be at his best if South Africa are to have a shot at their maiden World Cup title.
Behardien was confident the mountain fires were not going to stop either Steyn or du Plessis from celebrating the landmark one-dayer. “Of course it does affect you in some sort of way, but we have quite a strong support structure around us, the people, the friends and the family that’s here,” Behardien said. — Reuters
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