IND vs SA: Captain Temba Bavuma reaches huge milestone for South Africa; Only Graeme Smith has a better record!

Temba Bavuma added another milestone to his captaincy record on Day 1 of the second Test in Guwahati, becoming the ninth South African to score 1000 runs as Test captain. He reached the landmark in his 20th innings, the joint second-fastest for the country alongside Dudley Nourse and behind only Graeme Smith, who got there in 17.

Bavuma walked in at No. 4 after Aiden Markram and Ryan Rickelton fell in the space of three balls, just before and after tea respectively.


Steadying the innings after losing the opener, Bavuma once again showed his composure.

By lunch he had moved to 36 off 86 balls, getting to the milestone during the second session after tea was taken early due.

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His latest achievement comes at a time when his leadership has been central to South Africa’s position in the series. Bavuma’s unbeaten 55 in the Kolkata Test helped set up South Africa’s first win on Indian soil in 15 years. The visitors now have a chance to clinch a rare series victory in India — a result India will desperately look to avoid.

Bavuma has not lost a Test as captain, with 10 wins and a draw from 11 matches. South Africa coach Shukri Conrad recently summed up his skipper with admiration.

“Amazing, isn’t it? He is an amazing guy,” Conrad had said, calling him “unassuming, softspoken, sensible, ice-cool, composed.”

The captain himself had downplayed the emotion after the win in Kolkata, crediting his side’s resilience on a turning pitch.

“It’s probably true that we beat them (India) in their own game,” Bavuma had said after the Test.

He also stressed the need for sharper batting going forward: “There are areas that we can improve with our batting… we have to make sure that we take the little learnings from it and in the second Test we come out as a better outfit.”

His approach during the Kolkata chase reflected his method.

“I’ll always back my defence and my game is that simple,” Bavuma had explained, noting the unpredictable bounce.

On conditions, he added: “I think there weren’t any demons… I felt that it was a bit tricky to trust the bounce of the wicket.”

South Africa’s captain has also been praised for his use of resources, especially his management of Simon Harmer and Keshav Maharaj.

“Simon’s got over a thousand First-Class wickets, so he knows what he’s doing,” Bavuma had said.

With the series in the balance, his 1000-run milestone offers another reminder of his growing influence both as batter and leader, as South Africa build their first-innings total in Guwahati.


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