De Klerk says Springboks motivated to 'prove world wrong'

De Klerk says "the whole world" believes France will win the World Cup on home soil, but he warned the tournament "does strange things to some teams and some players don't like the pressure".

The Springboks, who are sweating on the fitness of captain Siya Kolisi after knee surgery, are ranked fourth in the world and De Klerk believes the underdog tag fits them.

"I think we're always going to see ourselves as underdogs going into games, just because of the opportunities that some of us haven't got," he told AFP.

"We always want to prove the world wrong - I don't think we've ever really been favourites if we've come up against big sides."

De Klerk will be hoping this year's World Cup ends the same way it did in 2019, when the Springboks beat England 32-12 in the final in Yokohama.

It was their third World Cup triumph.

De Klerk says England will be dangerous at the World Cup despite months of struggle, and believes head coach Steve Borthwick will give them "new energy" after replacing Eddie Jones.

But he warned that the Springboks are "a much more oiled side" than they were at this stage four years ago, and will fight to the last breath to retain their title.

"It's very competitive at the moment, which is great - it shows that rugby is in a good spot and people want to come and watch," he said.

"I would say the top four or five sides in the world could easily do it."