I'm willing to do the ugly job for the team : Pretorius

South Africa's Dwaine Pretorius has six wickets so far in the tournament after the Proteas recovered from an opening loss to Australia to beat West Indies and Sri Lanka. He has bowled mostly at death and despite moderate records at the international level in the past, he has been successful in doing the job for South Africa in the mega tournament.

Pretorius almost didn't make the World Cup as he injured a rib -- taking a catch -- and then tested positive for Covid-19 earlier this year. However, that is not new for him as he has got used to such setbacks in his career. After two knee surgeries early in his career, he put cricket on hold to finish a degree in accounting and only made his international debut in 2016 when he was 27.

At 32, Pretorius appreciates that his chances with the national team are precious and thus, is happy doing the "ugly job" of death bowling at the T20 World Cup as he seeks to make up for lost time in his on-off career.

"If I can do a job for the team and put us in a better situation, I'm willing to do that ugly job if you want to call it that. It's something that doesn't always necessarily look the prettiest but it's very effective. And I've built my whole career on that," said Pretorius on Monday ahead of Tuesday's clash against Bangladesh in Abu Dhabi.

At the World Cup, South Africa have had to overcome the controversy over wicketkeeper-batsman Quinton de Kock refusing to take the knee and pulling out of the game against West Indies. De Kock eventually apologized with Pretorius insisting that the squad is as united as it ever has been as they chase an elusive world title.

"What astonishes me is how this team has stuck together. Doesn't really matter what controversy has come out or what controversy is at the board level. This team, we've been together for quite a while now. That's probably one of the biggest advantages we have when it comes to COVID and bubble life. 

"You're really forced to spend a lot of time together. And you start realizing how much it actually means to each other to be playing for your country."