"There will be a brutally honest analysis of the Proteas' early demise in the 2009 ICC Champions Trophy and other failures of this nature in knock-out competitions to ensure that it does not happen again...If mistakes have been made, then they must be acknowledged and remedied before the next World Cup. All credit must go to the Proteas for being ranked as the world's top Test and ODI team. However, this must not overshadow the urgent need to bridge the gap between these ratings and the failure of the Proteas to reach the semi-finals of the ICC Champions Trophy on home soil as well as other major knock-out tournaments elsewhere.

The best systems available have been put in place, such as:

* A broad base of outstanding players which is the envy of the cricketing world

* Variety and balance in key playing positions

* Full-time support specialists in all relevant fields

* An efficient high performance programme

* Loyal and committed sponsors

* A large and enthusiastic supporters' base

With these basics on hand, a way must surely be found to get the Proteas to take their winning ways into knock-out tournaments. The analysis and remedial process is to begin immediately and a report on the way forward will be presented to the Board of Directors of Cricket South Africa by the National Coach at its next Board meeting on the October 30."

SA's final ICC Match

Graeme Smith

It’s not pleasant having to explain and deal with another early exit from an ICC event just three months after the T20 disappointment in England but we have to deal with whatever life throws at us and move forward in a positive frame of mind.

There are reasons for our failure to reach the semi finals of the Champions Trophy but there are no excuses. We weren’t good enough over three games and we accept that. It hurts – it hurts a lot – but it’s happened and we have to do everything in our power to improve and make sure we are contenders in the next T20 World Championship in the West Indies next year and also at the 2011 World Cup on the subcontinent.

We always knew that our schedule might be a problem coming into this tournament because we had not played any hard, international cricket for over two months but we did everything we could to prepare and overcome that. We had two hard training camps and played warm-up matches but there simply is no substitute for the real thing.

Bowlers take longer than batsmen to shake off the rust and get back into the rhythm and we conceded over 300 in two of the games as a result. I’m proud of the way we chased a huge score against England but would have been a lot prouder if we had managed to get over the line.

I was a bit surprised and disappointed that Andrew Strauss refused to let me have a runner for the final five overs when I was suffering from cramp but that is something he will live with. The world is round which means things come back to you.

The inconsistency of the runner situation is a problem. Sometimes the runner is allowed and sometimes not. Most captains agree to a runner in that situation but Andrew decided to stick to the letter of the law rather than the spirit of the law. Once again, it is not an excuse and I am not saying it would have made the difference.

As much as we have ourselves to blame and can look at the things we did wrong, or poorly, we have to pay due credit to Owais Shah and Paul Collingwood for the way they laid the platform for Eion Morgan who played some audacious shots which probably took the game away from us. England played superbly and deserve credit far more than we deserve criticism.

Sri Lanka are also one of the best one-day sides in the world and they, too, have been eliminated before the semi finals. Anything can happen in a sprint format like this involving the best teams in the world. India are also under pressure to qualify which means that the three ‘favourite’ teams could all miss the semis.

We have a lot of domestic cricket to play before England come back in November and I expect us all to be battle-hardened and ready to do justice to our status in both forms of the game. We had high expectations for the Champions Trophy but we have not lived up to them. The challenge now is to use the pain of defeat and disappointment as a tool to inspire an even more determined drive to win and consolidate our position at the top of world cricket.

I am deeply sorry for all those supporters who hoped and believed we would do it this time, but please don’t think for a moment that we won’t get the job done. We still strongly believe in our ability as individuals and our ability to win as a team. We will get the job done.

Miss a game at your peril

Jonty Rhodes

I am looking forward to playing India

Ricky Ponting

Will you accept the fact that Pakistan could have lost the match, if Suresh Raina and Rahul Dravid would have played a bit longer?  

There was little threat. But we knew they would get caught. They tried very hard but we knew our bowlers could have broken the partnership. Actually it is our partnership which made the difference between the two teams. 

Is it your best hundred? 

It would be a memorable one. The team won and I have played a small role which is really very very satisfying. 

What would be your target for this tournament?

I want to carry on the current form in the remaining matches of ICC Champions trophy.

Why did you start slowly?

I wanted to consolidate the situation by being cautious, not losing any wicket. Actually that is my game. After I settle down I normally try to accelerate later. 

That’s what it had happened on Friday against India. You took 70 balls to score 36 runs. But the next 70 run came in 40 balls? 

Team needed that blocking. We did not want to invite any pressure by losing wickets early. 

Were you surprised when Virat Kohli came into bowl? 

Yes, I was. I think Harbhajan would have been brought then. Dhoni then wanted to finish the quota of the fifth bowler by bringing Kohli and Yousuf.  

You got maximum runs by putting the ball in the backward point area? 

Do you think the loss in the first match would create a major problem in the ICC CT?

It doesn't make a lot of difference to us. We know we still have to turn up and play pretty well to beat a strong South Africa side. Sri Lanka played exceptionally well in the first match. We're under no illusions about how hard it is going to be.

What would be your impression about the wicket here in SA?

The wicket is a lot better than we expected it to be. Not sure we're going to play on the same one or we've got a new block. It was a slow deck and suited the Sri Lanka more than the South Africans and it brings the question whether we play two spinners and what's the best tactic on a wicket like that.

Will you support of keeping 2 spinners in the side?

In the past if you look at how balanced South Africa line-up, is that they play two spinners. I think they will adapt pretty quickly to the conditions and they know them pretty well. It won't hurt us coming out of Sri Lanka for last six weeks. We've played on wickets like this and hopefully we're ready for that. But it'll be a tough ask.

What is your impression about the ODI cricket?

I think it's great. The format of the ICC Champions Trophy is also nice. It feels like every game is relevant. In the past ICC Champions Trophy there's probably been a few almost warm-up like games you've been able to get yourself into the tournament. You have to turn up here ready to play and ready to win, otherwise you can get knocked out quickly. For me personally, the relevance of the ODI game, the easiest solution is to play less games. I don't think we need to tinker around with the format. I think we've played so much people get a bit sick of seeing it so if you reduce the amount of games that is a quick fix solution.

Lot of talk about tinkering...

So much talk about tinkering and there has been in the past, for me personally, it is a good format and it has produced an array of good cricketers and different styles as well. With the ODI format you can still get a number of different cricketers who can succeed. If we take that away and keep tinkering with it we'll lose those styles of cricketers. We're lucky in cricket that we have three formats and people can enjoy all three. If we keep changing we might lose some of the fanbase. As long as we don't overload the public we can get a nice balance between the three.

Tell us something about the preparation for the ICC CT.

We know coming here that we have to beat quality teams. England has come off a tough series against Australia. But all teams in the group will be wary of each other. We had mixed results in the warm-ups. We lost to a first-class team and then played really well against India. Hopefully we can take the confidence of the India game into our first game. Particularly it's our batting department where we've struggled a lot. But a couple of guys stepped up. To make 300 against an Indian side is always something that makes me happy as captain and pleases the team as well. Challenge is to put a score on that board and defend it as a bowling unit.

Our bowling attack has been firing well

There was a time in the not-so-distant past when Asian teams were routinely labelled underdogs for tournaments like the ICC Champions Trophy, particularly if it was being held in South Africa. To be fair, we often lived up to that pre-tournament billing with uninspiring displays, and struggled with the alien conditions.

Fortunately, things have changed for Asian cricketers, who travel better these days and Sri Lanka, India and Pakistan all have real ambitions of winning the tournament.
Non-Asian teams have become much better at playing spin on the subcontinent and we, similarly, have adapted to playing pace on bouncier and quicker pitches. Some of that stems from improved skills and technique but mostly from our growing mental strength and confidence. Our aim was to learn how to win in all conditions against any opposition and we now believe we can achieve that.

While India must have been disappointed with their early exit from the ICC World Twenty20 in England, Sri Lanka and Pakistan kept the Asia flag flying. In the end, the variety of our bowlers and the natural flair of our batsmen made the best use of the conditions, albeit on pitches at Trent Bridge and the Oval that were quite slow and spin-friendly. The same could happen in South Africa.

It's very early to be playing international cricket in South Africa and you'd expect fresh pitches and pace bowlers running amok. But this is an international tournament rather than a bilateral series and the curators will have been given clear instructions to produce batting surfaces. With the modern technology of greenhouse pitches available to ground staff these days, as well as the dry highveld climate in Johannesburg and Pretoria, I don't think batsmen need be too worried aside for the odd late thunderstorm.

We've played both India and Pakistan in recent times and I think we have managed to close the gap that was between us with regard to the one-day format. After being in the doldrums for a while, Pakistan have been slowly getting their house in order while India are, deservedly, perched at the top of the ICC ODI rankings after a very impressive run since their ICC World Cup disaster.

India looked a little bit rusty at times during the recent tri-series back home - where the third team was New Zealand - but they saved their best performance for the final and we were outplayed fair and square. That win was fashioned from the blade of Sachin Tendulkar with a brilliant century, a master class in how to construct a match-winning century in a high-pressure final.

While India certainly have some talented players coming through, I think his presence, coupled with the return of Rahul Dravid, stiffens their batting line-up. Their vast experience and battle-hardened techniques, especially against fast bowling, gives them a more solid feel, especially in the absence of Virender Sehwag.

Sehwag, who has an excellent record in South Africa, is a huge player for India and he'll be sorely missed. The likes of Sehwag - or, for us right now, Tillekeratne Dilshan - are initiative-snatching players. They unsettle bowlers, pressurizing them into making mistakes. Within a few overs they've gifted you momentum and made the job for the rest of the batsmen so much easier. So, yes, Sehwag is a loss. Fortunately, though, India have plenty of batting stars and this facet of their game remains their strength.

Their bowling is strong, especially when Zaheer Khan and Harbhajan Singh are fit and in form, but it is their batting that makes them so formidable. Their fielding, like ours and Pakistan's, remains an area that needs plenty of work. The fielding of both India and Sri Lanka during the earlier-mentioned tri-series was well below acceptable standards.

M.S. Dhoni is a captain I enjoy playing against and he's obviously a natural leader, a man that likes to lead from the front and a captain whose calm and unflustered demeanor feeds his players with confidence. He follows his instincts as a decision-maker and seems to be willing to make the tough choices that a captain sometimes needs to make.

Pakistan have a similarly charismatic leader in Younis Khan and seem to have gelled into a pretty cohesive side. We outplayed Pakistan in our recent Test series and also in our first three one-dayers to take that ODI series. However, they finished the tour on a high with three powerful performances that showed just how dangerous they can be when on-song. There is no doubt they are a mercurial bunch, totally and dangerously unpredictable. That makes them a team no one can make the mistake of taking lightly.

We, as a team, are also evolving quite nicely. We have been going through a period of transition in our one-day cricket for some time now and the results of that rebuilding are starting to be seen. We have a strong core of players to take us forward to the World Cup in 2011. After a few inconsistent performances in recent ODI tours and series I think we are improving.

The most promising development has been the growing strength of our middle-order. We were too reliant on our top-order and vulnerable if we lost early wickets but the reintegration of Thilan Samaraweera into the side has given it some stability and two youngsters, left-hander Thilina Kandamby and all-rounder Angelo Mathews, have impressed me with their attitude, commitment and mental strength.

Our bowling attack has been firing well for a while now. We have a great variety in our attack with different types of pace bowlers and spinners. We are blessed to have unique and unorthodox talents like Murali, Mendis and Malinga who give us a bit of the 'X-factor' in a tournament like this. Our bowling was excellent during the ICC World Twenty20 and I am hoping the same combinations will be similarly effective here.

Thursday's Game

Wayne Parnell

Cricket gives you the biggest ups and downs, and so close together! It was horrible after Tuesday when we played so badly against Sri Lanka and then just 48 hours later we were celebrating victory over New Zealand.
I couldn’t have imagined losing and being eliminated from the tournament so early, especially after bowling poorly in the first game. I started alright with the new ball but I became a bit tentative in the middle and lost my rhythm completely at one stage. It was the most pressure I’ve felt in my international career but I got through it and I know I’ll be a better player and a better person because of it.
Graeme could have changed the plan and given the ‘death’ overs to somebody else because I’d gone for more runs in both games than I should have but he showed faith in me and I really, really appreciate that. There’s nothing better than having a captain who backs you and trusts you not to let the team down. Fortunately I was able to repay him with five wickets, including the vital one of Ross Taylor which probably made the difference between chasing 250 and 215.
Some cricketers never get to play in an ICC event and others have to wait years to get the chance – and there’s me playing in two world events within three months at the age of 20. I am very, very lucky and I know it!
Herschelle and Makhaya have too much energy at the best of times but when they aren’t playing they are like two fireworks in the changing room. But it was a great relief to have them there on Tuesday night because they refused to let anybody feel ‘down’ and they were so positive, constantly reminding us that we could win the next two games and the defeat wouldn’t matter.
People probably imagine that we have two days ‘off’ between matches but it doesn’t feel like that with practise sessions, physio and various functions that we attend for the BCCI or sponsors. The time will go very quickly until we play England on Sunday which is a good thing because I’m raring to go and can’t wait to get back on the field again.

Sri Lanka Match

Johan Botha

There is no doubt that a lack of hard, international match practise counted against us on Tuesday but we did everything we possibly could to prepare for the tournament and we certainly cannot have any excuses.
Sri Lanka came straight from a tough triangular series against India and New Zealand and they hit the ground running. It also helps that they have one of the most talented and well balanced squads in the tournament!

SA were in complete control

Jonty Rhodes

The prospect of South Africa being eliminated from the tournament after three days was too horrible to contemplate - so I didn't! I was always confident that they would be too strong for New Zealand even though the Black Caps have some dangerous players.
The Proteas have not only stayed alive but did some useful work in repairing the damage which Sri Lanka inflicted on their net run rate. It didn't look like they were deliberately trying to score quickly which pleased me because you don’t take liberties with the game of cricket at any level, but certainly not in a tournament involving the best eight teams in the world.
Having bowled and fielded brilliantly to dismiss New Zealand for just 214, it would have been unforgivable if South Africa had assumed that the hard work was done and taken victory for granted.
It was an absolute pleasure watching them construct the run chase in the methodical and clinical way they did and, although the people around me in the Standard Bank hospitality box became a bit nervous when wickets fell, I always thought they were in complete control. It was a comprehensive win and will give the team's collective confidence a vital boost after the shock of the Sri Lanka game.
 The only thing which didn’t work for the guys was their throwing at the stumps. JP Duminy must have had a dozen unsuccessful throws while AB de Villiers tried even more often from backward point without making contact once! It reminded of the last guy to spend a lot of time at backward point for South Africa, that Rhodes guy. He was hopeless at hitting the stumps.
Actually, there is quite a lot of luck involved and sometimes it’s just not your day. We always learn to throw at the base of the stumps when the 'keeper can't get there and sometimes the ball hits a piece of turf and defelects away - or bounces straight over the top. You just have to console yourself with the fact that you’ll hit them all the time in the next game.
 I said after the heavy loss to Sri Lanka that South Africa’s habit of starting quickly and fading may be about to turn around. If they can maintain the intensity they showed against New Zealand and win again against England on Sunday, then they should reach the semi finals with huge momentum piled up behind them.
For now, though, I think we can all breath a collective sigh of relief (apart from Kiwis, of course) because the tournament might just have felt a little flat if the hosts had been eliminated before half the teams had even played a game.

Gradually you have become the captain of Pakistan?

I know for sure that I am the vice-captain of Pakistan Team. The deputy of Younus khan as far as the Test and One-day cricket is concerned but captain of Twenty20 team.    

Do you feel any pressure to perform the duty of a skipper?

Pressure? Each and every player has to swallow pressure in international cricket. You must know how to perform under pressure situation. I am enjoying every moment in the cricket field. Life is full of struggle and if you remember you are representing 16 crore people, you will have special feeling. I am really lucky and honored indeed, to have played for Pakistan.    

What is your experience so far playing for Pakistan in the last thirteen years?

Every player has to go through success and failure. So did I, I have no hesitation in announcing that I cried more than laughing in the cricket field.    

How do you see the fortune of Pakistan team in this ICC Champions Trophy?

We have got a very balanced side which gives us tremendous confidence of winning the trophy here as well.    

Why are you so confident this time?

It has got many reasons. First of all, our bowling department. They are very sharp. If you go to the history of Pakistan cricket, you will notice that our bowlers have done a great job for Pakistan. I am sure, they will do a great job this time here also. We are ready to challenge any team.    

Will you not be relieved to have Mohd. Asif in your team?

Oh, Yes. Asif is a match winner. He served his ban period till 22nd September 2009. So he will be available. He is fit and raring to go. And trust me he is very hungry to play in international cricket which would be a major plus point for our team's strength.    

Since you won the World Twenty20, people are expecting that you would do well in ICC Champions Trophy as well. Do you agree?

The entire nation would be disappointed if we fail to deliver. We have our self belief which should be transformed into action in the middle. We can only assure you that we are all focused to do well.

I haven't read Andrew Flintoff's quotes in full, but I am told he has likened the 2006/07 Ashes tour of Australia to a 'booze cruise', which surprises me.
Again, I don't know the complete context of his remarks, but I can say that in all my time playing for England we have been very professional individually and as a team in our preparations.
If that's his opinion, so be it, but I do not think we have been unprofessional. I take playing for England very seriously and prepare for each game as if it will be my last.
Each person is an individual, and they do different things on tour. Some people will go for a meal and have a couple of drinks, while others might stay in their hotel room.
From my point of view I have always thought the England team to be very professional.
On a lighter note, I had a belter of a question when we spoke to the media earlier on Wednesday. I was talking to several television crews when a lady from Indian TV asked if we should have more sex as cricketers.
I was a bit taken aback and thought I had heard her wrong, but it turns out that India coach Gary Kirsten has come out with a dossier saying your testosterone levels drop if you don't have sex.
She wanted to know if we had a similar dossier, but I can confirm it doesn't enter into the England gameplan!
We flew in to South Africa on Tuesday for the ICC Champions Trophy and had a runaround to get the journey out of our legs, and are just off for some proper training now.
Although we haven't got any warm-up games ahead of our first match against Sri Lanka on Friday, I don't think a lack of match practice will be a problem after seven one-dayers against Australia!
We will have a look at the wicket between now and Friday, and the only other thing we have to cope with is the altitude up here in Johannesburg.
We have to take as much confidence as we can from the last one-dayer against Australia.
It is easy to be negative, but we can beat anyone on our day and if we can build on a superb bowling performance we can definitely win.
Sri Lanka looked awesome against South Africa, and they have two quality spin bowlers in Muttiah Muralitharan and Ajantha Mendis who will be a real challenge.
We are without Kevin Pietersen for this tournament and we are all hoping he will be fit for the Test series against South Africa.
Of course you miss a world class batsman like KP, but we have just won the Ashes without him, and if he is not available there will be players ready to step up and fill the void.