Follow Us
JOHANNESBURG, January 25
After getting his maiden five-wicket haul in Test cricket, Jasprit Bumrah said that the current Indian attack has “pace” and is not afraid of dishing out short-pitched stuff like their South African counterparts. “The Indian pacers have also got pace. We are just trying to get wickets (by bowling short to tail-enders),” Bumrah said when asked about the short-pitched bowling against the South African tail. “If we get it from them, we can give it back as well. That was our basic plan as they were trying to play some shots.”
Bumrah spoke about how the Indian attack had been hunting in a pack. “We always want to contribute as a pack. On another day, maybe another bowler will get more wickets but we want to create pressure as a pack. It was always a dream to play Test cricket and get a first five-wicket haul over here,” said Bumrah.
Amla backs SA to chase 270
South Africa’s Hashim Amla says they could chase down 270 in the final innings, but they will need some luck on a wicket that has considerable pace, bounce and lateral movement.
“It's quite difficult, there are a few cracks in good areas and once the ball lands there it is shooting up quite alarmingly. You have to get in line and take it on,” said Amla. — Agencies
Gavaskar, Pollock slam pitch
Former Test captains Sunil Gavaskar and Shaun Pollock today criticised the Wanderers wicket, saying it was a “completely bowler- friendly pitch”. Gavaskar was of the view that Test match pitches needed to be of sporting nature. “You can get a very flat surface which is totally in favour of batsmen. This is a pitch which is totally in favour of bowlers,” said Gavaskar. Pollock went a step further and called the surface bad. “If you've got deliveries behaving like this on Day 2 of a Test match, it can't be judged a good surface,” he said. Pollock compared the Wanderers pitch to the one in Nagpur that was used for the India-South Africa Test in 2015. It was rated “poor” by ICC. “You go to India and get a surface like Nagpur where it turned too much. This (Johannesburg) can't be judged a good surface because as a batsman you are never in,” he said. — PTI
2
4
6