Sri Lanka seamer Asitha Fernando and teammates celebrates the dismissal of Proteas opener Aiden Markram during the first day of the first Test at Kingsmead in Durban. Sri Lanka seamer Asitha Fernando and teammates celebrate the dismissal of Proteas opener Aiden Markram during the first day of the first Test at Kingsmead in Durban. Picture: Phill Magakoe / AFP
Image: Phill Magakoe / AFP
Proteas Test batting coach Ashwell Prince said opener Aiden Markram is still quite “positive” despite his struggles with the bat in 2024.
Markram started the year with a bang with a magnificent century against India on a shocking Newlands pitch during the New Year’s Test in Cape Town. However, he has only managed one fifty in his last eight Test innings, which includes Wednesday’s effort of nine on the first morning of the first Test against Sri Lanka at Kingsmead in Durban.
His form in white-ball cricket has been just as bad this year. Despite leading the Proteas to the 2024 T20 World Cup final in the West Indies and United States, Markram is yet to score a half-century in 18 T20 matches this year, while his sole 50 in three One-Day Internationals came in their last match against Afghanistan.
Before the series started, Test coach Shurki Conrad said he would be backing his “premier” opener. Prince said Markram is desperate to get a score, but there must be some perspective after the Sri Lankan pace attack dominated in bowler-friendly conditions on an overcast first morning of this two-Test series.
Sri Lanka get their first wicket of the day 🏏![CDATA[]]>💥
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“In his mind, he is quite strong and he is quite positive. He would like to get a score. We saw last year against India, on a very difficult pitch in Cape Town, he got a 100,” Prince told the media after first day’s play was ashed out in the 21st over with the Proteas on 80/4.
“Mentally he is quite positive. At the moment, when you are going through a bad patch, you would have liked to arrive here with the sun shining. The fact that they were taking the covers off late, with weather around, doesn’t help things.”
The conditions certainly were very good for bowling, with the heavy overhead conditions and green-looking pitch greeting the players. This after the surface had been under the covers for 14 hours following overnight, and early morning showers.
After winning the toss, Sri Lanka made the most of the conditions, removing openers Markram and Tony de Zorzi caught in the slips in the first four overs.
Tristan Stubbs played a watchful 38-ball 16 before he also edged a ball to slip, David Bedingham was then bowled by a ball that cut back sharply off the seam
Captain Temba Bavuma and wicket-keeper Kyle Verreynne will resume the Proteas’ innings on Thursday morning.
“Usually teams will look to bat first (in Durban), but with the overhead conditions and the forecast, I’d say the conditions were favourable for bowling,” Prince said.
“Sri Lanka also bowled well. The deliveries that got the wickets were good deliveries. Having said that, there will always be an analysis from the individuals to assess how they could have played the deliveries better.
“As a general rule, our batters have good techniques. So you don’t want to analyse after every dismissal and think that ‘I have a technical problem’. If you calculate the quality of the bowling plus the conditions, sometimes they just get you out. It’s not always a technical issue.“
Bavuma, however, looked a lot more comfortable at the crease than his teammates. Although he was given a life, after being caught down the leg-side off a no-ball after chasing a short ball, he stayed compact and tried to play the ball as late as possible.
He didn’t look in any discomfort from the elbow injury that kept him out of cricket since October, putting the bad balls away through the covers, while watching the ball closely when defending.
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Prince is hoping that the Proteas will be greeted with a bit of sunshine on the second day, and is confident that their long batting line-up, which includes all-rounders Wiaan Mulder and Marco Jansen to come, can put on a decent first-innings total.
“Temba had a bit of a reprieve and I thought he played really well today for someone who has been out of the game for a little while,” Prince said.
“Under those circumstances and in those conditions, he played really late, played the ball under his eyes. That was encouraging to see.
“With six wickets left, and the sun shining tomorrow, if we can get through the first hour with as little damage as possible, we still have a couple of century makers coming to the crease. We can build a score.”
Play will resume at 9.30am on Thursday morning.
@JohnGoliath82