INSIDE EDGE: The Temba Bavuma column (vol 4)
Proteas white-ball captain Temba Bavuma made his ODI debut in 2016 against Ireland before he wore his nation’s colours for the first time in 2019 in the T20I format. In the game’s longest format, he has 51 test caps to his name and would have featured for South Africa on their ongoing multi-format tour to the United Kingdom had injury not hit. Bavuma will nevertheless be keeping a close eye on his teammates as they do battle in a three-match series and look to entrench their position as the premier test team in the game. He will be sharing his insight and opinion for the duration of the Proteas’ UK tour.
Wednesday, 24 August - Seamless start and poker faces
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The Proteas produced a dominant and ruthless performance to win the first test at Lord’s. We were fortunate that the toss went our way, with bowler-friendly conditions, but the intensity we brought with the ball was unmatched. We never let England get into the game. The momentum was on our side right from the start, and we really ran with it.
RABADA’S MAGICAL LANDMARK
Reaching the 250-wicket milestone in tests is amazing from KG Rabada. He boasts the best strike rate ever in world cricket which is testament to his talent and ability. One of KG’s goals would have been to get his name on the Lord’s honours board so you saw the way he celebrated and acknowledged that when he walked off the field. It was massive for him to be entrenched in the history books.
From the time KG came onto the scene, he was touted as a superstar and he hasn’t let anyone down. He seems older than 27 because he’s been around for a while. I think the biggest thing (in terms of potentially becoming South Africa’s leading test wicket-taker) is the number of matches we play. We don’t get to play as many tests as the big three (Australia, England and India) so unfortunately, it doesn’t really give KG the opportunity to rack up those wickets.
On a batting front, I felt we were solid and had a good partnership upfront with Dean and SJ Erwee. That opening partnership is always important. You want the batters to knuckle down and deal with that swinging, nipping ball. The middle order didn’t do it for us but hats off to Keshav Maharaj and Marco Jansen for getting us to a more than respectable total. I felt their partnership was a big moment in the game within our batting innings. Owing to the lead we had, it really gave our strong bowling battery an opportunity to attack the England batting unit in the second innings, and we came good.
KEY TO RETAINING OUR INTENSITY
I think the performance that the South African team were able to show hit the English by surprise. In anticipation of the second test, the British press will be building it up that England are going to come hard at us and show their true quality. And, as a South African outfit, that is exactly what we will be expecting. From a player’s point of view, my expectation is that we will still try to keep to the same disciplines, retain our intensity and make sure that when the moments come about we will be able to take them again.
In terms of England’s game plan, it’s a high-risk, high-reward style of play. It’s definitely an exciting brand of cricket but, in the Lord’s test, I wouldn’t say they went out playing that style of cricket that we have seen in some of their previous test matches. For me, it looked like they were a bit rusty in terms of their skills owing to five weeks off from their last test. When it comes to playing test cricket, you really need some time to get your skills back into check. Coming from a defeat like that, it will be hard for England to get their confidence up but the willingness will be there to right the wrongs at Old Trafford.
OLD TRAFFORD IS A BIT FLATTER
At Lord’s, it made sense to play the four-seam attack as conditions dictated so. Whereas, in Manchester, it tends to be a bit flatter and brings the spinners into play as the test goes on. Simon Harmer is in our bowling resources so that is something we could consider. At whose expense? That is the decision the coach and captain will have to make. If the selectors make a change it will be about horses for courses and playing the best team that they feel will produce the goods in those conditions. At the end of the day, it’s all about conditions and having tactics and plans that speak to those conditions.
LANGE’S PERFECT POKER FACE
Tuesday was a travel day for the Proteas and those bus trips can get entertaining. Myself and a few of the other guys like to play card games. There’s one called Eat It which is quite popular and you get some guys who play a bit of poker. In terms of the best poker player in the team, I would say it’s our bowling coach Charl Langeveldt. You never know when he’s bluffing or not and he has a good strategy for the game. KG Rabada would be the worst poker player because most of the time he’s the first one out!
When I’m not sleeping on the bus trips, I enjoy partaking in card games. They are very competitive and the guys are always wanting to win at almost everything they do. I guess it speaks to our character as players and there is always that sense of pride in everything we do. I am probably one of the more competitive guys in the Proteas setup.
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