“When you play against Australia, you don’t just play against those individuals, you play against what it means to be Australian,” Bavuma says. “It’s always a clash we look forward to. It tends to at least bring out the competitive edge of both teams. We have a strong desire to get the better of them.
“We give them a lot of respect but we also take confidence in that we’ve been able to get the better of them. The respect lies in the fact that they’ve been very dominant over the years. On the field itself, there will be massive moments and massive clashes. Their batting attack, our bowling attack, their bowling attack versus what our batting attack can do – there’s opportunities for guys to take each other on and really make the play for the team. The WTC final showed that.”
Is being South African tied to the ability to always stay in the fight? That and more, according to Bavuma.
“Part of it is bringing back the aspect of fast bowlers. Countries or players must know when they come into South Africa, they’re going to deal with fast bowling.”
That’s why even though this series will be hosted on slower coastal venues, South Africa have brought back Anrich Nortje, who last played a Test more than three years ago, and Gerald Coetzee, who played one two years ago, to join Corbin Bosch and Marco Jansen in the attack.
Under Bavuma, South Africa have already shown that representation and excellence can go together, and now they are also making room for what was previously considered self-interest. Those who took Kolpak deals (Simon Harmer), or who prefer franchise leagues over domestic duties (Nortje and Quinton de Kock) can, have and will play for South Africa if they are deemed the best for the job. If there are any grudges held, they are well-hidden.
“We accept that everyone has their interests,” Bavuma says. “The world of cricket now is different to what it was ten years ago. Then, the sentiment of playing for your country was the ultimate. Now, the interests are a little bit different. We are accepting of all of that, but we still find a way for us to embrace whatever our common cause as a team is.”
“I’ve done some introspection on everything and tried to understand why we’ve been able to get the success that we’ve had and looked at areas that we can improve. I’m also trying to feed into the aspirations and ambitions that we have as a team and that I have personally and make sure that we are on the right path towards all that.
“Every season always feels like a big season and maybe this one feels a little bit more. I wouldn’t want to put too much pressure on myself to say or define who I am as a cricketer. I’ve had over ten years of international cricket, and you’d hate to think that one moment will dictate everything about it. But this year we’ve got the opportunity to play against the big three teams and, from a competitive point of view, that’s definitely going to get us going. We want to see ourselves on the right side of the result.”
If South Africa succeed, Bavuma will join an elite group of South African captains who have beaten Australia at home. Out of Peter van der Merwe, Ali Bacher and Faf du Plessis, only du Plessis has done it a second time since readmission, in a fraught series that will be recalled aplenty.
The 2018 contest – known as the Sandpapergate series – spoke to exactly what Bavuma meant when he said it’s about coming up “against what it means to be Australian”.
“At Newlands, I struggled to adapt to the intensity and pace of play [scoring 1 and 5] and obviously went to the Wanderers [for the fourth Test] under pressure from a form point of view.”
Dealing with his own disappointment, Bavuma was only peripherally aware of the issues in the Australian camp.
“You felt like you were an extra in this movie and you couldn’t really grasp what was happening. As one of the younger guys, I never really got involved. You could see what was happening, but you always kind of looked to the senior guys. I can only imagine what a guy like Faf would have been dealing with as a captain.”
“I understand that he reached out to the captain Steve Smith then, offering a shoulder,” Bavuma says. “But I’m happy I was one of the younger guys and I didn’t have to expend a great deal of energy on that.”
What Bavuma noticed was an Australian side deeply affected by the incidents in Cape Town.
“We got a sense of it after the series at the Wanderers when we shared a beer with their team. We saw and felt a more timid Australian team.”
Since then, South Africa have played Australia twice – losing 0-2 down under in 2022-23 and winning the WTC final last year.
“They’re not as in-your-face. They still play their cricket hard. They’ve still got guys like Travis Head at the top, who look to put you under pressure. And then they still have that quartet of a bowling attack always putting you under pressure. But they’re probably not as brash and in your face as if I think of 2016, when we toured Australia. They made you feel uncomfortable.
“From a cricketing point of view, they haven’t lost a great deal. It’s still as tough as the Australia that we know.”
What’s also changed is that South Africa have found a bit more of their own voice, thanks to recent successes, and are confident to give it back.
“South Africans also have a character of their own. We’re also not scared to throw a couple of chirps and we’ll be part of the banter. You don’t really want to lose that. That’s just part of the spectacle, as long as it’s all above board. You look forward to it. I think of the Barmy Army and the songs that they sing, it’s a part of the whole spectacle. Playing against Australia, you look forward to the fact that when you land at the airport in Australia, you’re going to get chirped [at] by the flight attendants.”
Instead, Bavuma just wants South Africans to enjoy seeing their Test side in action after almost two years. They didn’t have any home matches scheduled last summer, primarily so the country’s premier grounds could undergo upgrades ahead of the 2027 World Cup, but it left a bad taste in the mouths of both players and fans, especially after their WTC success.
“I found it weird that we didn’t get a proper opportunity to celebrate the moment with the people here at home, Bavuma says. “Not having the Boxing Day and New Year’s Test [last season] didn’t go down well.”
“There will always be questions around whether we are deserving, so for us to be able to go there and achieve that historic feat strengthened the belief in ourselves. We just kind of tightened that title that we currently have as the [WTC] champions.”
Now, South Africa find themselves in a unique position to chase more success than ever before. If Bavuma could wish for something over the next year, it is: “To win everything. To find ourselves in the WTC final, to find ourselves in the 50-over final, then who knows? The way we’ve performed, it shows that anything is possible. We just need to believe and we just need to work diligently towards it.”
Firdose Moonda is Cricinfo’s senior correspondent for Africa and women’s cricket
Source: www.cricinfo.com
