The previous 2-0 whitewash in Tests was South Africa's maiden red-ball series win in India after 25 years.
The South African head coach, Shukri Conrad, has cleared the air on his “grovel” remark towards the hosts following a 2-1 series defeat in the 50-over format. The former player admitted that he should have chosen a better word to convey the intended message, as he rued his statement made during the IND vs SA 2nd Test.
“It was never my intention to cause any malice or be anything other than humble. Could I have been smarter with the word I used? Absolutely. It left space for people to attach their own context, when all I meant was that India should have to work really hard,” stated the Proteas’ coach in the post-match press conference.
Notably, after scripting a historic red-ball victory in the series-opener at the iconic Eden Gardens, the reigning World Test Championship (WTC) winners also dominated India throughout the 2nd Test.
However, when he was questioned about why the visitors did not declare their innings early, even after securing a huge lead, Conrad made the aforementioned comment in a bid to express that they wanted them to push harder on the field. But the head coach regretted using that particular phrasing and denied any intention of humiliation or disrespect.
“Being humble is a cornerstone of our Test team and all our teams, really. People should not even know who the coach is. It should always be about the players. Unfortunately, the noise became about me. I am going to be careful with what I say because any word can be pulled into a different frame,” he added.
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Coming into the 2-1 ODI series loss on Indian soil, the coach credited two of the Men in Blue stalwarts, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, for taking away the series from them. He also noted that these impactful innings will be immensely inspiring for the budding Proteas stars.
“Our youngsters got to see firsthand what the best in the world looks like. Virat and Rohit showed the standards required, and that’s an experience we have to take forward,” concluded the coach.
The former Indian captain, Kohli, sustained a stupendous form in the home series following his blazing show in the final Australia vs India ODI fixture. He notched up a Player of the Series-winning performance that included two centuries and an unbeaten fifty-plus knock.
Another ex-skipper, Rohit, also continued his fiery touch to score 146 runs in the three-match series after his sublime 121 not out in Sydney. Next up, India will take on South Africa for a five-T20Is series, starting on December 9.
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