Dale Steyn fed up of 'chokers' tag

Dale Steyn is fed up of South Africa's 'chokers' tag, and believes they do not deserve to go in to the 2011 World Cup with doubts over their ability to succeed in crunch games.

South Africa had looked the part in four of the five World Cups they participated in since 1992, before losing in the elimination rounds. They were knocked out in the first round of the 2003 edition at home, on the back of a wrong reading of the Duckworth-Lewis par scores. They have faced similar problems in the first three editions of the World Twenty20 despite going in as pre-tournament favourites on each occasion, yet Steyn felt it was unfair to put undue pressure on the young side, several of whom will be in their first World Cup next year.

"For me, to be labelled as chokers really sucks," Steyn told Reuters. "This team is made up of a lot of young guys who will play for South Africa for a long time. Why are we being called chokers, a lot of us have never been to a World Cup before.

"I've played in two Twenty20 World Cups but there was hardly a year between them and you could hardly pick yourself up from the last one. It was extremely disappointing what happened in the West Indies [in the 2010 World Twenty20], but we have another opportunity at the end of this season and hopefully we can get this monkey off our back," Steyn said.

The South African player group is currently gearing up for the final lap before the World Cup with a conditioning camp in the High Performance Center at Tuks University. Their upcoming commitments are three ODIs against Zimbabwe, five ODIs and two Tests against Pakistan in Dubai, followed by three Tests and five ODIs at home against India.

"With the World Cup just around the corner, we need to have the perfect side to play in those conditions, players that will fit like a glove," Steyn said. "If you ask me one year from now what was the highlight of the season, whether it's beating India at home in a Test series or the World Cup, let's be honest, we want to bring that trophy back with us."