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Durban - Mike Hesson believes South Africa and New Zealand share a mutual respect that was demonstrated at the end of their 2015 Cricket World Cup semi-final in Auckland back in March.
The Black Caps are in the country for a limited overs series (2 T20Is and 3 ODIs) against the Proteas that gets under way with the first T20I in Durban on Friday.
The last time the sides met was in that memorable World Cup semi-final where the Proteas were sent crashing out of the tournament in the final over, a match that still haunts cricket lovers in the country.
So, is the upcoming series about revenge? The New Zealand coach doesn’t think so.
“I’ve seen the adverts on TV and they seem to be portraying it that way. I think both sides have highly competitive people,” Hesson said in Durban on Monday.
“The World Cup semi-final was a big game but I think you saw at the back end of it the respect that both sides have for each other. I think that we play the game in the right spirit and South Africa do as well.
“The game ebbed and flowed throughout the whole match ... rain, wickets falling at key times, sides feeling like they’re on top and then falling behind. We were fortunate to come out on the right side but it could have easily gone the other way.”
The Proteas lost a three-match ODI series against Bangladesh last month and recovering from that will likely be more important than anything else for Russell Domingo’s side.
But Hesson says there is no shame in losing a series in Bangladesh these days.
“We’ve had some tough times in Bangladesh as well. They are a very tough proposition in their own country,” he said.
“They know how to play in those conditions and for players that are brought up on wickets that have more pace and bounce it certainly is a completely different challenge of your skills. I wasn’t surprised at all.”
