Why Lara Goodall didn’t make Proteas Cricket World Cup squad
Lara Goodall was excluded from the Proteas Women’s Cricket World Cup squad due to inconsistent recent form, despite her experience and past contributions to the team. Picture: Backpagepix
Image: Backpagepix
One of the unlucky exclusions from the Proteas squad announced for the Women’s 50-over Cricket World Cup was reliable opener Lara Goodall, and SA women’s convenor of selectors Clinton Du Preez has explained the decision.
Last week the Proteas announced their squad for the showpiece event starting in India and Sri Lanka, with 15 players called up and Goodall was missing from that list.
With the tournament set to begin later this month, the recent form of the 29-year-old was not enough to secure her spot on the plane.
Though Goodall has played 55 ODIs for South Africa, her average of 20 is on the low side and it’s also been three years since the made a half century.
Selection Dilemma: Du Preez Explains Tough Choices for Squad
“It was very difficult. Between her and Ayanda Hlubi, they were the two difficult decisions we had,” Du Preez told SportsBoom.co.za.
“We enjoy variation upfront with the left-hand and right-hand combination, but Lara has just not been consistent enough over the last few tours. When we looked at it, the coach and myself we thought, you know what, let’s go with the players that are currently on form and are coming from good performances.”
Lara Goodall’s Non-Selection: A Focus on Consistency for the Proteas
Goodall is certainly one of the more experienced players in the Proteas lineup, having made her debut for the side back in 2016. This made her non-selection more difficult.
“With Lara, definitely, there’s always the potential. We’ve backed her for a long time in that top order, and we feel it’s time she needs to reward the batting line-up and the team with consistent performances.
“(With regard to the) conversations, it’s tough discussions because there is a sense of where they feel they need to be part of the squad. The coach and myself were very convinced that the consistency was the reason why (Goodall missed out).”