Facing a tough first match against six-time champions Australia, head coach Mandla Mashimbyi insists the Proteas will not be intimidated by their top-ranked opponents in their opening fixture of the Women’s T20 World Cup in Manchester on Saturday (3.30pm start).

The SA team played Australia in two training games in Arundel in the build-up to the tournament, winning one and losing the other, and while Australia will turn out as the favourites to lift the title, Mashimbyi said yesterday the Proteas would not allow the credentials of their opponents to get in their heads.

“For us, it’s not about what Australia does. We are focused on what we want to do, and at the end of the day we just need to make sure we cover all our bases and play cricket the way we want to play it,” Mashimbyi said.

“The focus will be on us because the only competition we have in this World Cup is how well we play every game.”

Despite reaching the finals at the last two editions of the T20 World Cup, as well as last year’s 50-over World Cup, South Africa were still in search of their maiden global trophy.

Only four teams – Australia, England, New Zealand and West Indies – had secured the title at nine previous editions of the Women’s T20 World Cup since it was first held in 2009.

And if they wanted to be held in the same esteem as those teams, Mashimbyi felt it was important for the Proteas to overcome that final hurdle and prove they could perform under pressure when it counted most.

“We’re not the favourites because other teams have done it,” Mashimbyi said.

“We haven’t done it, so we need to change that narrative, and the only way to do that is to make sure we go all the way this time.”

He was confident, however, that the fifth-ranked Proteas could take a big step forward in developing the national team’s legacy.

“Other teams are trying to protect their history, and we are trying to create history… so it’s about understanding those things and making sure we live up to it every time we get the chance to play.”