Proteas renew bittersweet World Cup adventure: 'We're not chokers'

The Proteas take a winning momentum into their Cricket World Cup opener against Sri Lanka desperate to escape the tag of big-time chokers.

Since South Africa returned from the apartheid-era wilderness, their relationship with the tournament has been bittersweet at best, cursed at worst.

In 1992, they were handed a rain-revised and mathematically impossible target of 22 runs off one ball to defeat England in the semi-final.

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Eleven years later, they misread the rain rules in a tied match with Sri Lanka and exited their own tournament.

At the 1999 event, they conjured defeat from certain victory in a farcical finish in their semi-final with Australia.

"I genuinely believe that we're not chokers," key batsman David Miller told ESPNcricinfo this week.

"How that tag affects people is an individual thing, but it's never, ever bothered me."

He added: "Obviously there's been history and there's been games that we've not played well in that have let us down. But I would never say the 'chokers' tag applies to us, although that's what everyone says."

Fortunately for South Africa, they should have arrived in India free of the baggage of self-destruction as seven members of the 15-man squad have never played in a World Cup.

That includes skipper Temba Bavuma, who prefers to focus on the experience of the players in his squad with match-tough backgrounds in the Indian Premier League.

Quinton de Kock, who will retire from ODI cricket after the tournament, for example has thrived in India and in 2022 hit the third highest ever score in IPL history of 140 not out.

"A lot of the teams have guys who played in India, have done well in India," said Bavuma.

"I think all we