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| January 01, 2007 | Monday | Zilhaj 10, 1427 |
Proteas have a job to finish, says captain
DURBAN, Dec 31: South Africa have a job to finish after levelling their Test series against India, captain Graeme Smith said on Saturday.
South Africa won the second Test by 174 runs by dismissing India, who needed 354 to win, for 179 in the seventh over after tea on the fifth day.
India won the first Test in Johannesburg by 123 runs, and the series now moves to Cape Town where the third and deciding Test starts on Tuesday.
“Right now the adrenaline is pumping with the euphoria of the win and our confidence is up,” Smith told a news conference.
“But our feet are firmly on the ground. We know what we need to do at Newlands, where it starts all over again.”
Bad light plagued the match throughout and Smith said he had feared the conditions would dictate the outcome.
“When I opened my curtains this morning and saw the clouds I started cursing Durban again, Smith said. I guess you arrive at the ground and you just hope.”
Only 4.3 overs were possible in the morning session because of bad light but in that time fast bowler Makhaya Ntini dismissed Sachin Tendulkar for nought and Wasim Jaffer for 28.
Smith said the unsettled conditions favoured the South Africans.
“I think it played into our hands because I don't think India expected to bat in the first session,” he said.
Ntini took five for 48 and earned his captain's praise.
“It's a hallmark of a very good cricketer when he stands up when your team needs you, and he (Ntini) stood up,” Smith said.
Ntini described a lively exchange he had with Shantakumaran Sreesanth, who was last out for 10 when he was caught behind by Mark Boucher off medium-pacer Andrew Hall.
“He (Sreesanth) says he can't see the ball (because of the light),” Ntini told a news conference.
“So I bowl him a little half-volley and he drives me for four. I ask him, 'Did you see that?'
“If you can't see the ball, you must duck the half-volley as well.
The mood was considerably less jovial in the Indian camp.
“Today was disappointing because we knew we would have to face 70 or 75 overs and we didn't achieve that,” captain Rahul Dravid told a news conference.
“Ntini bowled a good spell first up and our top order didn't cope very well with that and we paid the price.”
Dravid denied that the Indian batsmen had adopted a defensive frame of mind.
“Once the light became a factor we knew there wasn't enough time to go for a win but I don't think the guys became defensive.
“We just didn't play well, at no stage was anyone in the dressing room complacent.”
Dravid was confident that India could still win the series.
“For long periods in this Test match we stayed close to them and we were competitive,” he said.—Reuters
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