Kolkata (West Bengal) [India], November 13 : South Africa captain Temba Bavuma shares a different perspective from his head coach, Shukri Conrad, regarding a potential victory in the upcoming two Tests in India being on par with their ICC World Test Championship triumph at the 'Home of Cricket', Lord's, in June this year.
South Africa ended its decades-long ICC silverware drought by outgunning the 2023 champions, Australia, with a resounding five-wicket win to bring the WTC mace home. The magnitude of Proteas' famous story of success was deemed to change the landscape of cricket in South Africa.
On Wednesday, Conrad described the upcoming two Tests in India as the "biggest challenge", ranking the series alongside the WTC final. For Bavuma, there isn't much that can succeed their memorable success at Lord's. However, succeeding in a Test series in India would undoubtedly be second to that, considering their last victory dates back to 1999.
"I think obviously winning the World Test Championship, I think not much can trump that. But second to that, I think we'd be winning in India. It's something that's, I wouldn't even say it's eluded us, but we haven't been able to do for the longest time," Bavuma said on the eve of the first Test scheduled to commence on Friday at Kolkata's Eden Gardens.
"So I mean, that's definitely up there in terms of ambition. I think over the next two weeks, that's what we'll be pushing towards. So coming to India, it's never easy. We understand the magnitude of the challenge. We look forward to the challenge," Bavuma added.
For India, the two home Tests against the Proteas are vital in the context of qualifying for the WTC 2025-27 final. India, currently ranked third in the WTC standings, is undergoing a transition phase since batting behemoths Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli pulled the plug on their glorious Test careers in May.
The selectors passed down the captaincy mantle from Rohit to Shubman Gill, and new blood was infused in the red-ball format, marking a new dawn in India's Test era. Gill, with a revamped squad, toured England in June for five gruelling Tests. He led from the front, garnering a record-shattering 754 runs to end the series level at 2-2.
India then hosted the West Indies for two home Tests, sweeping the series with a 2-0 win without much effort. While analysing India's current form and setup, Bavuma expects the two-match series to be a thrilling affair.
"It should be exciting looking at the makeup of both teams. Fantastic players within the Indian team, but a little bit of inexperience. So I think it should be an exciting series," Bavuma added.
India's Test squad: Shubman Gill (C), Rishabh Pant (WK) (VC), Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Sai Sudharsan, Devdutt Padikkal, Dhruv Jurel, Ravindra Jadeja, Washington Sundar, Jasprit Bumrah, Axar Patel, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Mohammed Siraj, Kuldeep Yadav, Akash Deep
South Africa squad: Temba Bavuma (C), Corbin Bosch, Dewald Brevis, Tony de Zorzi, Zubayr Hamza, Simon Harmer, Marco Jansen, Keshav Maharaj, Aiden Markram, Wiaan Mulder, Senuran Muthusamy, Kagiso Rabada, Ryan Rickelton, Tristan Stubbs and Kyle Verreynne.
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