SA A get in some good work in the middle
SOUTH AFRICA A finished their three-day warm-up fixture against the India Board President’s XI in a predictable draw, though all 15 members of the touring party would have benefited from having a trot out in Bengaluru.
The hosts eventually declared on 397/6, in reply to SA A’s 473/4 offering from the first day and a bit.
SA A’s second dig saw them reach 61/2, before the captains called a truce and shook hands.
For SA A’s batsmen, who would have arrived braced for a sincere examination by spin, the first taste of combat in India has been one of terrific value. They have all spent time at the crease, and they will return to the M Chinnaswamy Stadium for their first “Test” against India A in a few days.
“It has been a great experience thus far, and I think it has definitely been an eye-opener for those of us on our first trip here,” Sarel Erwee said.
The opening batsman, who has steadily risen through the ranks in KwaZulu-Natal, through to the Dolphins, and now to the SA A side, said Bengaluru was a long way from home, back in the sleepy corner that is Pietermaritzburg.
“I guess it is a bit of a culture shock at first, but that is why we play this game. We get to travel the world, and experience different conditions and cultures, and that life experience is priceless,” he explained.
Erwee said a few of the team had ventured onto the streets of Bengaluru in tuktuks, and had lived to tell the tale.
“I really don’t know how it works! It’s crazy, but you never see an accident. It has been a good week in the city, and we have also got in some good work in the middle,” he added.
Erwee was one of two centurions for SA A, as his 117 paved the way for a solid performance with the bat. Tellingly, he said, the wicket offered more concern via seam than spin.
“It was a good deck, but it did seam quite a bit. It was quite hard, so we look forward to that in the Tests. It really is a wonderful ground, and we have been told the venue for the second game is also worldclass,” Erwee said.
In that sense, then, Erwee and the rest of the batsmen have it all to do to impress, and make an early claim for a spot in the Proteas touring party to India next year.
“I don’t worry about things like that. It is important to worry about one game at a time, because if you get ahead of yourself, this game will bite you,” he explained.
SA A and India A will contest a two-match “Test” series of four-day contests, with both matches to be staged in Bengaluru.