Shamik Chakrabarty at Eden Gardens
Keshav Maharaj responded to a four and a couple of sixes in an over with a delivery that was pushed a little wide outside off. Axar Patel, who had to chance his arm, went for a slog-sweep but top-edged it. Temba Bavuma ran back from midwicket to take the skier. A turnout of 39,769 at Eden Gardens on Sunday was stunned. The Proteas celebrated in the sound of silence.
The glory moment came next ball, as Mohammed Siraj edged a Maharaj delivery to Aiden Markram at slip to secure a 30-run victory in the first Test — their first at Eden and first in India in 15 years. The tourists beat the hosts at their own game, catching a vaunted batting line-up in a spin web. Even without Shubman Gill, India should have chased down 124 in the fourth innings. They imploded.
South Africa didn’t mind. Over two-and-half days, they played better cricket than India to go one-up in the two-match series. At the forefront of it was their skipper.
Bavuma’s 55 not out in the second innings was gold standard on a treacherous Eden pitch. His 44-run eighth wicket partnership with Corbin Bosch was the game-changer. That India didn’t start the Day 3 proceedings with Jasprit Bumrah from one end wasn’t their problem.
As South Africa defended a pretty low total, Bavuma’s captaincy was superb. He employed the spin-choke to perfection. Bringing on Markram from the High Court End, a move that saw the back of a well-set Washington Sundar, was first class. The skipper’s field placements were spot on, and it kept the opposition under pressure.
At the post-match press conference, Bavuma was asked about his team talk after his side slid to 93/7 at the end of the second day’s play. “Coming in this morning, I think my message to the guys was always to just try and play what’s in front of you,” said the captain. “Try not to have too many preconceived ideas. This morning, it kind of calmed down a bit.”
A target of 124 was never chased down in the fourth innings at Eden before this game. South Africa drew inspiration from history. “I think a stat came out at the end of the day in terms of the highest successful run chase on this ground,” Bavuma mentioned. “That also gave us a bit of confidence that if we were going to go down, some sort of history was going to have to be made. I think just keeping our nerve, playing what’s in front of us and keeping that belief (gave us the win).”
Captain Fantastic agreed that his team had beaten India at their own game. “Yeah, it’s probably true,” said Bavuma. “I think the wicket that was prepared is what I understand was asked on their side. We have come here knowing that the wickets are going to be spinner-friendly, similar to what we got in this game.” He described the surface as a bit “extreme”, where trusting the bounce was a challenge.
In the end, Simon Harmer was adjudged Player of the Match for his eight-wicket match haul. India’s batting couldn’t handle an off-spinner on their home patch. Going beyond the hard numbers though, Bavuma’s fifty — the only half-century in the game — on this deck was a match-winning effort. His leadership was inspirational. The diminutive 35-year-old was his team’s real hero.
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