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Aiden Markram
Saddled with the responsibility of taking South Africa into future, their T20I captain Aiden Markram on Thursday said he has prioritised moulding young players into long-term prospects for the country. The 29-year-old was appointed the skipper ahead of the T20 World Cup, which ended in a title round defeat to India in June before losing to the West Indies in an three-match away series in August. But the tough start has not deterred him, and he is excited about the new crop of South African cricketers. "It's to really support them, help them at training, or wherever they feel they need help," Markram told select media persons in an interaction facilitated by FanCode, the official digital partner of the upcoming South Africa vs Ireland series. "I've been fortunate enough to have played a few games and have a little bit more experience than some of the younger guys. "So, it's about them asking some really good questions and me giving some honest feedback to them, maybe trying to assi
South African skipper Aiden Markram was certain that he does not want to play another match on the pitch here, but was chuffed to see his side tame a challenging track in the semifinal to enter its maiden T20 World Cup final. The deck at the Brian Lara Academy stadium offered considerable movement off the seam and South African quicks used it to the optimum to bowl out Afghanistan for an insufficient 56. If we reflect back on this wicket, we'll probably be pretty happy that we're not playing here again. T20 cricket as a whole, you want entertainment, said Markram in the post-match press meet after SA defeated Afghanistan by nine wickets. Markram was delighted to see South Africa finding a way to win on a challenging strip. "The wickets that we've had throughout the competition have been pretty challenging. It's hard to tell that a wicket is not good because it can't just always be a batter's game. "Having said that, still taking the positives we can. Wickets are tough. So, finding
Rohit Sharma, the leader, will need to channelise the champion tactician that resides in him as India look to restore parity against South Africa and remain consequential in the World Championship points table when the second Test starts here on Wednesday. Ravindra Jadeja, India's "Most Valuable Player" across formats, will come back to add the requisite middle-order batting balance and steady overs with the old Kookaburra but it will be the skipper's choice of third and fourth speed merchants that will define the embattled team's response. As harsh as it might sound, no one knows more than Rohit that Prasidh Krishna is pretty undercooked to counter the vagaries of Test cricket and Shardul Thakur's bits and pieces talent will not win him much on most days. But with three top-order batters, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill and Shreyas Iyer compounding the team's worries with their ineptitude while dealing with the bouncer barrage, Shardul's presence gives the side an assumption of ...