- By Namrata Vijay
- Sun, 16 Nov 2025 08:54 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
IND vs SA 1st Test: After his team's historic win against India in Kolkata, South African captain Temba Bavuma, who had scored a gritty fifty, revealed that he was happy with this win, and he also took an important catch of Axar Patel and joked that he was happy for taking that catch with his small hands. His gritty fifty, Simon Harmer's eight-wicket haul, and Shubman Gill's absence led to India losing the match by 30 runs, with the visitors leading the series by 1-0. Apart from his half-century, Bavuma also made another significant contribution as he took a stunning catch to dismiss Axar, who tried to take the match away from them and had smashed Keshav Maharaj for a four and two sixes, but then got out.
Talking about the game during the post-match presentation, he said, "You want to be a part of those types of games and obviously be on the right side of the result. I think we tried to hold our ground as much as we could. We knew it was going to be tough with the bat; it was tough for us, but we needed to capitalise on what was there. I think we guys did that beautifully. Fortunately, things have worked out quite well. Our bowlers got us back into the game, but that partnership with Bosch, I think a little bit with Marco as well, at the end of the day, just gave a little bit of impetus that we could play a little bit better this morning."
He also talked about his batting performances in Indian and Asian conditions and revealed, "I am just comfortable with myself, with my technique, not to worry about triggering and all those types of things. I have a decent understanding of the game. I've come here to India wanting to do well. I do not have the best record when it comes to these conditions. So it's a bit of that exuberance on my side to see myself learning these conditions and implementing all the little things that I am trying, and keep contributing to the team. Opening up the leg a little bit (helped in the second innings). It was just an awareness, the way I played it. Fortunately, I have played a few innings, so I understand a little bit of the adjustments that you need to make. And luck, we all need luck."
Talking about the catch which helped the team to dismiss Axar, he added, "Crucial moment again. Axar had momentum on his side, and we kind of know how the Indian batters play. When they have momentum, they go even harder. So fortunately, he was able to make a mistake. I was able to grab him with my small hands. Those are the moments that you want to be a part of. You don't want to give it to someone else. You want to be doing it for the team,".
Temba had won the toss and chose to bat first. Openers Aiden Markram and Ryan Rickelton had built a partnership of 50 runs for the first wicket, but they couldn't survive the speed of Asprit Bumrah (5/27) and Mohammed Siraj (2/47) and were bundled out for 159 runs.