Bavuma in fine fettle, says Proteas coach Conrad

Shukri Conrad said there is no need to put an arm around Temba Bavuma’s shoulders as another fortnight firmly in the spotlight looms for the Proteas Test captain.

Bavuma has largely stayed out of the public eye since returning from the World Cup, where he endured harsh criticism after a poor tournament with the bat. Bavuma, who also dealt with a family bereavement in that period, only appeared again during the ODI series with India, conversing with white ball coach Rob Walter in Gqeberha.

Conrad, however, said there’ll be no special treatment ahead of the series with India that starts on Boxing Day at SuperSport Park.

“There are no demons there,” the Proteas' Test coach said on Saturday. “Temba is fine, there is no need to build him up.”

While Bavuma’s form in India was poor, in making a stirring defence of his captaincy he pointed out how it was the best performance by a South African team at a World Cup. 

Conrad and Bavuma famously held intimate talks ahead of the home ODI series against England earlier this year, with the player seeking reassurance about his role as captain and clarity about his batting.

There’ll be none of that this time, said Conrad. “There’ll be no special attention or special treatment.” 

The task the pair face as the leaders of the Proteas is hard enough. India, despite some of their top players also having not played since the World Cup, look powerful on paper. Their desire to win a Test series in South Africa for the first time will arguably be even stronger than was the case in 2022, when a mini meltdown happened in Cape Town as defeat in that series loomed. 

“If it was possible to make this series any bigger, then the fact that India has never won here does that — we want to hold onto that proud record. India is the biggest series we will play in the next year,” Conrad said.

For that reason Conrad would have been pleased to see both Kagiso Rabada and Lungi Ngidi get through lengthy spells at training. Like Bavuma, the two fast bowlers haven’t played since the World Cup, something Conrad said he ideally would have wanted to avoid.

“But that's life, I’m not in the least bit concerned they will be undercooked. Both 'KG' and Lungi are in the squad and up for selection.”

Rabada picked up a bruised heel during the World Cup semifinal defeat against the Australians, while Ngidi missed the T20s against India because of an ankle problem. 

Should they get through Sunday’s training too, it will leave Conrad and Bavuma with a selection conundrum. Four fast bowlers or three and the spin of Keshav Maharaj? 

That will depend on the pitch, which on Saturday still had a lush covering of green grass but is unlikely to look the same on Tuesday morning.

In the last first class match played at SuperSport Park two weeks ago, the home team, the Titans beat the Warriors by 13 runs, in a match that featured centuries for individual batters in the first innings, but was ended by Neil Brand and Dewald Brevis. The pair shared five wickets between them with left-arm spin from the former, and wrist spin from the latter.