Mandla Mashimbyi explains Proteas Women changes ahead of Caribbean tour

Mashimbyi has recalled the experienced Marizanne Kapp to the travelling party, following her structured conditioning block when they went to play in the sub-continent. 

Seamers Tumi Sekhukhune and Ayanda Hlubi are also back in the fold, while young Seshnie Naidu and left-handed batter Lara Goodall miss out. 

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The coach has explained that the changes had to do more with the kind of conditions they will be facing in Barbados, and widening their pool of selection as the ICC World Cup in India draws closer.

"Bringing the three ladies in now wasn't because we were bad, it was simply about giving opportunities to the new bowlers to see what they can do as well.

"We need to pick the right players for the conditions, and you must give as many opportunities to as many people to see what are the best combinations going forward," explained Mashimbyi. 

With the exception of Annerie Dercksen, the Proteas Women batters also struggled for consistent form in the ODI tri-series that also included India, while Tazmin Brits and Chloe Tryon showed some flashes of brilliance at times. 

Goodall seems to have paid the biggest price for their collective lack of runs. To be fair to the ladies, they were facing some pretty tough conditions, and most of them were treated at least once for one illness or another. 

"It's not a concern per se. This is what the Sri-Lankan tour has given us an opportunity to see, and to find out the formula for the middle passage of the game. The ladies will soon come to fully understand what their role within the team is, so that we won't have to have these conversations at the World Cup," said the coach. 

Mashimbyi also says the reason he wasn’t too worried about winning the matches in Sri-Lanka was because he was more interested in getting the basics right. He did, however, acknowledge that winning is still very important to build up confidence ahead of the 50-over showpiece.

He says they do take a few lessons from that tour into their next assignment, and those are the positives that came from their shortcomings in different departments. The One Day International series against the West Indies begins on June 11 and ends on the 17th, with three T20 Internationals to follow from June 20.