Proteas pull off memorable series win over India
A riveting test series came to an end with South Africa claiming a seven wicket win over India at Newlands and with that claiming a 2-1 series win in an enthralling series from start to finish.
The Proteas had Hollywoodbets Dolphins batsman Keegan Petersen to thank on the fourth day of the match as the diminutive number three made a second half century of the match; an innings that proved crucial in their win.
Petersen fell short of a memorable century when he was dismissed for 82 but his innings propelled him to the top of the series runs scoring chart and with that gave him the Player of the Match and Player of the Series awards.
41 not out from Rassie van der Dussen and 32 not out from Temba Bavuma saw the Proteas over the line just after lunch on day four and saw them to a memorable test series win and with it crucial ICC World Test Championship points.
Reflecting on the series, coach Mark Boucher was impressed by how the whole series was played and the competitiveness of it.
“It was a hard-fought series and there was some good cricket and it must be up there with one of the best series to have been played in South Africa,” Boucher said.
The coach was hugely impressed by how his team was lead and appreciated the attitude that his leaders showed in numerous pressure situations.
“Dean (Elgar) is that sort of character and lead from the front and Temba (Bavuma) as a vice captain is a similar character.
“So you have two leaders like that and the guys are certainly going to follow them and they both stood up in terms of their own games as well,” the coach added.
Petersen, who was playing in his fifth test match, showed that he has sewn the number three position up for the foreseeable future. Coach Boucher was full of praise for the free-flowing striker.
“He has always shown signs of the player that we are seeing right now and he stuck to his guns.
“He is a tough nut and batting at three in test cricket you have to be tough. You have to know your game and technically you have to be sound.
“Hopefully for him he just gets better and better and to bat three in South African conditions in a big series against big players and get man of the series – I’m very happy for him.”
Another inexperienced player that shone for the Proteas was tall left-arm seamer Marco Jansen. He finished as the second highest wicket taker in the series behind Kagiso Rabada and the coach feels that they have found a gem.
“It was just a matter of time before he came through because we can see the skill set that he has.
“Everyone is looking at him now and thinking what a find we have and as a 21 year-old he’s got a lot of cricket to learn but I think we’ve found a superstar in him at a very young age,” Boucher added.
The ODI series against India is the next focus for the Proteas which gets underway on Wednesday in Paarl.
