'Realistic' Rassie van der Dussen sets sights on T20 World Cup

In the cricket world, two South African talents, Rassie van der Dussen and Ryan Rickelton have been leaving no stone unturned at the ongoing SA20 tournament to stake their claim for a spot in the national squad ahead of the T20 World Cup later this year.

Rickelton, leading the run charts with impressive scores of 87 and 98 in the initial SA20 games, is eager to break into the international scene after being overlooked. Meanwhile, van der Dussen, displaying his prowess with a remarkable 104 off 50 balls, is determined to secure his spot for the T20 World Cup.

"There's a T20 World Cup later this year and I want to be in a position to hopefully put in strong performances for that," expressed van der Dussen, emphasising the importance of the T20 World Cup, as quoted by ESPNcricinfo.

Despite limited opportunities in recent T20Is, he remains optimistic about his capabilities, acknowledging that his recent numbers have not been exceptional. However, he remains steadfast in his belief, stating,

"The last few series, I haven't been playing and there've been some guys who have played really well. The last time I played was against Australia where I got one or two starts but I did not really convert. I am realistic in the sense that maybe my international T20 numbers in the last year or two, albeit not being bad, haven't shot the lights out. I know what I can do. I know what kind of T20 player I can be and hopefully today is the start of that."

With the T20 World Cup looming and no T20Is before the West Indies tour, white-ball coach Rob Walter plans to use the SA20 and other leagues to finalise the squad. Van der Dussen is strategically lining up his appearances, stating,

"I have this SA20, then I am going to PSL and then we have domestic CSA T20, so it's going to be three to four months of T20 cricket and I can really focus on that," he said. "As a player all you can really do is put on the performances and put the numbers on the board. I am not special, I am not above anyone else. If it's going to be a shoot out but if they are going to select performances, then your name needs to be up there."

Quinny (Quinton de Kock) will be moving on and Ryan fits into that: van der Dussen

A direct competitor to van der Dussen is his MI Cape Town teammate, Ryan Rickelton. Despite being overlooked for recent national squads, van der Dussen believes Rickelton has been unfortunate and is an excellent contender to replace Quinton de Kock, who might be on the way out.

"Quinny (Quinton de Kock) will be moving on and Ryan fits into that mould of someone who can replace Quinny. He definitely has the game. He's very resilient and sometimes setbacks give you a platform to come back," van der Dussen added.

As the SA20 tournament unfolds, both talented batters focus on giving strong performances to catch the selectors' attention. With the T20 World Cup on the horizon, these players are determined to turn the ongoing tournaments into stepping stones towards donning the national colours.