'The biggest chat among us is how you can be as good as you can be' - Bavuma
After being thumped by 214 runs in Kingsmead, Bavuma's South Africa had plenty of question-marks over them. All of that has dissipated with a roaring comeback at St George’s Park
They lost at Kingsmead by 214 runs last week, not least because of their own lack of application. They were 97/5 after two truncated days at St George’s Park, and 110/6 the next day. Yet they won by an innings and 31 runs on Thursday to level the series heading into the decider at Newlands, which starts on Tuesday (October 27).
Which planet do these people come from and how do we get there? Apologies. It’s not difficult to be knocked off the journalistic straight and narrow by this South Africa team. Especially if you’re also South African and you know what it’s like to brace yourself for the next economic, political or social disaster will come from. Because you know it’s coming. What you don’t know is who, what, when, where and why it’s happening.
The who, what, when and where of all that is no mystery. The why is less simple. Nevermind the how.
Temba Bavuma doesn’t have the luxury of leaving question-marks hanging in breathless air. Part of his job as South Africa’s captain is explaining how and why his team do what they do to the press.
“It was a spirited effort from us,” Bavuma told a press conference. “A lot was asked of us after the first Test in Durban. The biggest [question] was the character or the mentality of the team.
“Over the course of the five days [in Gqeberha] we’ve addressed that. From a batting point of view, from a bowling point of view, when things were tough, we managed to dig deep, stay in the game and, most importantly, get the result in our favour.”
Bavuma himself was the best example. His career-best 179 took South Africa to a declaration of 425/9. He shared stands of 132 with Marco Jansen and 183 with Simon Harmer after his team had shambled to 110/6. Then Jansen took 5/33 in Australia’s first innings and Kagiso Rabada claimed 4/77 in the second dig to dismiss the visitors for 99 and 295.
“We have our plans and we try to stick to as close as we can to them,” Bavuma said. “We adapt to what is happening and we know how to go about our business. We trust that, if we can be close to our strengths, we’ll be able to play to our best. We try to stay in the moment and stick to what we do best.”
It’s unfair, actually, to expect cricketers to explain the how and why of what they do. That makes the magic evaporate. So it was endearing and reassuring to hear Bavuma reveal what was going through his mind when Steven Smith pulled at Kagiso Rabada and sent a top edge swirling and spiralling into the pumping westerly wind and towards midwicket on Thursday, when Matthew Breetzke needed two grabs to make sure of the catch. Not that Bavuma saw any of that — he had turned his head away from the action during those excruciating seconds.
“I was very nervous at that time,” Bavuma said. “High catching at St George’s Park can be tough, especially when the wind is blowing like that. I couldn’t see who was under the catch, but it wasn’t a case of me not having faith in that individual. I allowed my emotions to get the better of me.”
There was more juicy humanity on display from Wiaan Mulder. It can be difficult to stick out in a team that bristles with Rabada and Jansen. But Mulder managed by taking the important wickets of Travis Head, who anchored Australia’s follow-on innings by batting for more than five hours for his 121, nightwatch Scott Boland, who hung around for longer than three hours for his 40, and the dangerous Pat Cummins, who Mulder snuffed out for eight.
“The biggest chat among us is how you can be as good as you can be,” Bavuma said. “Wiaan is a different character to everyone else. He feeds off confidence. Once he’s in that space he can play freely.”
Cricketers aren’t often portrayed as people first, players second. That is the fault of the press. But sometimes even the press can’t miss the person rising above the player.
“When you front up to the media you try to keep a steely face,” Bavuma said. “But when you’re alone in your room you can’t lie to yourself.”
Then he said something even more powerful: “We will take the confidence and belief from this performance. We will look after it.”
Many people talk about serving as custodians of cricket. Few among them pay those sentiments anything more than lip service. Then comes this guy and his team. Which planet do they come from and how do we get there?
