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Bangalore - AB de Villiers has been asked to come up with a world cup 'war cry' for the Proteas.
The batsman, and recently wicket keeper, boasts "exceptional" musicality, according to the South African cricket team's psychologist, Dr Henning Gericke, who will accompany the team to the tournament in India.
“We already have a team song, which is sung in various languages including Zulu, Afrikaans and English, but we want something special to motivate the team even more," he said.
De Villiers and Ampie du Preez, who took part in the kykNet reality TV series Zing, released their debut album, Maak jou drome waar (Make your dreams come true), at the end of last year.
Music to everyone's ears
"The goal is to make the team feel more at home on foreign soil, and to bring them closer to each other," explained Gericke. He was also counsellor to the Springboks during their successful world cup campaign in 2007.
"It's something that worked well for the Boks. We would play the same song in the team bus every time we entered the stadium. It was a tradition that players like Victor Matfield and John Smit really enjoyed."
The South Africans experimented with this technique on Tuesday, just before they beat defending champions, Australia, in a warm-up game.
However, Gericke's choice of CD was not music to everyone's ears.
'Protea Fire 54'
Protea bowler, Robin Peterson, joked on his Twitter profile that it sounds like "a DJ trapped in the wrong era".
"At the moment I'm just playing them music in general," said Gericke.
He also has other plans to motivate the team. "After each match, I hand over a little trophy to the player who showed the most spiritual strength on the playing field. And in the dressing rooms there are pictures of each of the players emblazoned with a motto of their choice.
"Each player also wears a green wrist band with the words: 'Protea Fire 54' written on it."
According to Gericke the words represent the energy with which the Proteas want to play for the 54 days they will spend away from home.
"We realise the team will have to face enormous challenges, but the guys are like brothers and I have a good feeling about what lies ahead."
The tournament starts on Saturday and the Proteas will face the West Indies on February 24 during their first group match in Delhi.
The batsman, and recently wicket keeper, boasts "exceptional" musicality, according to the South African cricket team's psychologist, Dr Henning Gericke, who will accompany the team to the tournament in India.
“We already have a team song, which is sung in various languages including Zulu, Afrikaans and English, but we want something special to motivate the team even more," he said.
De Villiers and Ampie du Preez, who took part in the kykNet reality TV series Zing, released their debut album, Maak jou drome waar (Make your dreams come true), at the end of last year.
Music to everyone's ears
"The goal is to make the team feel more at home on foreign soil, and to bring them closer to each other," explained Gericke. He was also counsellor to the Springboks during their successful world cup campaign in 2007.
"It's something that worked well for the Boks. We would play the same song in the team bus every time we entered the stadium. It was a tradition that players like Victor Matfield and John Smit really enjoyed."
The South Africans experimented with this technique on Tuesday, just before they beat defending champions, Australia, in a warm-up game.
However, Gericke's choice of CD was not music to everyone's ears.
'Protea Fire 54'
Protea bowler, Robin Peterson, joked on his Twitter profile that it sounds like "a DJ trapped in the wrong era".
"At the moment I'm just playing them music in general," said Gericke.
He also has other plans to motivate the team. "After each match, I hand over a little trophy to the player who showed the most spiritual strength on the playing field. And in the dressing rooms there are pictures of each of the players emblazoned with a motto of their choice.
"Each player also wears a green wrist band with the words: 'Protea Fire 54' written on it."
According to Gericke the words represent the energy with which the Proteas want to play for the 54 days they will spend away from home.
"We realise the team will have to face enormous challenges, but the guys are like brothers and I have a good feeling about what lies ahead."
The tournament starts on Saturday and the Proteas will face the West Indies on February 24 during their first group match in Delhi.
