SA look for more dominance
If there is anything that a 333-run margin of defeat says, it is that the victor truly has the measure of the vanquished. And yesterday, on the eve of the second Test against Bangladesh at the Mangaung Oval in Bloemfontein, South Africa skipper Faf du Plessis's words proved that they know it too – having seen them in Potchefstroom the Proteas know exactly which buttons to push to take Bangladesh apart.
Even with frontline and long-serving pacers like Morne Morkel, Dale Steyn and Vernon Philander injured, Du Plessis did not miss a beat in establishing that they were the dominant team in this contest.
"Just another dominating performance," he said in the pre-match press conference when asked what he was looking to gain from this match. "In conditions like this it's very important that we do that against Bangladesh. Yes, on their day they can be dangerous. But if we keep pressure on them and keep denying them opportunities to get on top of us... this game is really important for me -- that we show that consistency.
"Over five days in Potchefstroom we were brilliant. There wasn't half a session that belonged to Bangladesh. It was pretty much the perfect game. But it's important that we back it up here."
Du Plessis seemed more pleased with the pitch at Bloemfontein's Mangaung Oval than he was with the flat track laid out in Potchefstroom, and so the question of what he would do if he won the toss was put forward. "I'll leave it to the Bangladesh captain," said Du Plessis to a chorus of laughter during the pre-match press conference. The reference, of course, was to Mushfiqur Rahim winning the toss in Potchefstroom and inviting South Africa to bat on a flat wicket, which Bangladesh never really recovered from.
The pitch had a green tinge on it, but it was not as green as it was two days ago. "It's changed a bit, I think that's the nature of the thin grass they have here in Bloom, similar to Potch," said Du Plessis. "But there is more grass on the wicket and I think it hasn't been rolled as flat as it was in Potch, so there should be a little more pace and bounce.
There were lots of references to 'a team like Bangladesh', 'a batting lineup like theirs' and even what sounded in Afrikaans like 'no disrespect to Bangladesh' that showed that, although a generous man, Du Plessis fully expected to dominate Bangladesh over the next five days. With Morkel being absent through injury, it will fall to Duanne Olivier to step up and perhaps take the new ball, and Du Plessis thought it was a perfect opportunity to do so.
"It's a nice responsibility, especially for Duanne. He probably prefers to have the new ball in his hand. If Duanne gets his tail up I reckon he's going to click and it's going to be really good to see him go. But with big players missing, especially against teams like Bangladesh, it's important to see what your resources are," Du Plessis said.
"It's a nice thing for us," said the uncompromising du Plessis when asked about Tamim Iqbal's absence. "In a lineup like that you look to a batsman like that to show you how to play in these conditions. He is their best player according to me. So it will be a big loss for them."
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