Rabada wins another bat after bet with Bedingham

Last season’s Boxing Day Test had far-reaching consequences for the Proteas. Not only did that nerve-shredding win against Pakistan secure qualification for the World Test Championship final but it was also the start of a bet that has had ongoing repercussions for David Bedingham’s kit bag.

Before Kagiso Rabada went to bat in the second innings at Centurion, with South Africa on 99/8 and still needing 49 runs to win, Bedingham told the Proteas’ premier fast bowler he’d give him one of his bats if he scored 30 — and would continue to do so every time he did so afterwards. Rabada scored an unbeaten 31 in that epic finish and got one of Bedingham’s bats.

The bet continues. When he reached 30 in Rawalpindi on Wednesday’s day 3 during the match-changing 10th-wicket partnership with Senuran Muthusamy in South Africa’s eight-wicket second Test win against Pakistan, Rabada waved animatedly towards Bedingham again.

“We have the same sponsor, Gray-Nicolls. He thought his money was safe after the first Test. It was one way to get up on him,” Rabada said.

The pair haven’t yet worked out what or how Bedingham is compensated when roles are reversed. “Moving forward, he will have his own reward system put in place,” Rabada chirped.

Bedingham, a notably stylish player, would undoubtedly have appreciated the manner in which Rabada scored his 71 runs, with several free-flowing drives and one memorable lofted straight six off Shaheen Shah Afridi, which now sits atop the podium of the pace bowler’s favourite shots.

Rabada was asked to rank whether Wednesday’s six or the aesthetically pleasing cover drive that helped South Africa beat the West Indies in last year’s T20 World Cup was the best shot he’d struck for the Proteas.

“Shaheen’s a fantastic bowler. He cleaned me up in the previous game, so I’ll have to say that one. We didn’t go all the way in the World Cup or else I would have said that [the cover drive].”

Bedingham wasn’t the only one happy to see Rabada transfer his form at training into a match situation.

“I’ve seen KG play that well in the nets. He’s always got shot of the day. He had 100 on the cards there, so he’ll get a fine for ‘100 avoided’ later on,” captain Aiden Markram said, laughing. “There is a big battle among the guys down the order not to bat 11. Whether that innings helps his case now is a call that Shuks [coach Shukri Conrad] can make.”

What Rabada demonstrated with the fifth-highest score by a No 11 in a Test innings — with Muthusamy’s contributions with bat and ball, Tony De Zorzi finishing as the leading run-scorer in the series and Simon Harmer taking a second innings five-for upon his return to the side after a two-year absence — is that the Proteas’ depth is strong and each player is desperate to contribute.

“It’s a great space to be in as a team,” Markram said. “When everyone is contributing — maybe not with huge scores — guys feel pride in their performance when they get on the right side of a result. There is nothing better than touring with a great group of guys. That spirit isn’t fake; it’s a real thing. It makes touring easier and through that we see good performances as well.”

Harmer, who finished the series with 13 wickets, praised the impact of Conrad. “In yesteryear we would make poor decisions under pressure. The coaches, and in particular Shuks, deserve credit for instilling belief in the players and allowing people to be free,” he said.

“You look at Dewald Brevis — [Conrad] gives him the freedom to play how he feels he should play and not how the coach thinks he should play. That is huge for a player when you go out there with that freedom and take away the element of fear of failure.”