South Africa vs Bangladesh, 1st Test: Proteas skipper Dean Elgar termed the victory in Durban Test as “pretty special”.
Durban :
South Africa captain Dean Elgar said that the victory against Bangladesh in the 1st Test was ‘pretty special’ and added that it was a hard-fought win after Proteas defeated Bangladesh with massive 220-runs in the first Test to take a 1-0 lead in the two-match Test series here at Kingsmead, Durban on Monday. Bangladesh were bowled out for just 53 runs in the second innings, their second-lowest total in Test history. Keshav Maharaj finished the match with figures of 7/32 in 10 overs. Simon Harmer picked up the other three wickets as the Proteas finished with an opening Test match win.
“Pretty special win, it’s not often we’ve had a Test go into five days. It’s been a hard graft playing in conditions that we’re not used to seeing, we had to apply ourselves well, and we had to execute our skills which was a bit of a challenge for the young-ish bowling unit. It’s a hard-fought win, which is a massive positive for us. The conditions played a factor in our team selection with two experienced spinners and seamers who applied themselves well. There are a lot of learning curves for a lot of guys,” said South Africa skipper Dean Elgar in a post-match presentation.
In both innings, Dean Elgar was the star with the bat for South Africa as he smashed fifty, including a crucial 64 runs that took the hosts to 204 runs in the second innings and helped set Bangladesh a tough target.
“The team management has worked really hard, it’s a massive squad effort. I think experience plays a massive part. We have been fortunate enough to experience that in the subcontinent where they declare and you bat in the dark and a lot of things react differently. And you’re facing the spin under the lights which do make it play a bit differently. Fortunately, we were in a position of betting first and knowing that the light deteriorates, and knowing that you know runs on the board obviously played in our favour, but yeah, I would have liked to see batters apply themselves a little bit better, especially yesterday after lunch, pushing on 300-320,” he added.
“Knowing that the light was touch-and-go forces you to bowl the spinners and that worked out well for us. Extremely healthy for both guys (spinners), they are pushing each other in the nets. They are extremely competitive,” said Elgar.
With the win, South Africa booked their second spot in the World Test Championship standings where they are currently behind Australia with a win percentage of 66.66. Bangladesh, on the other hand, stands at the bottom of the table at the eighth spot with a win percentage of 20.
The two teams will next clash in Port Elizabeth in the second and final Test, starting on Thursday.
