Temba Bavuma's Big Sachin Tendulkar Remark After Match-Defining 179 Against Australia

Temba Bavuma modelling his game around Sachin Tendulkar© AFP

South Africa captain Temba Bavuma emerged as his team's saviour against the daunting Australian pace attack in the second Test of the three-match series on Tuesday. Bavuma smashed a potentially match-defining 179 off 334 balls as South Africa posted 425/9 in their first innings at St George's Park. After the end of the third day's play, Bavuma was asked about the way he shapes his game and the lessons he has incorporated into his style of play, having tried to emulate his idol Sachin Tendulkar over the years.

The Proteas skipper admitted that he tries to build a technique similar to Tendulkar's. However, since he isn't a big guy, it is tough for him to take big strides; hence, efficient movement is often the key to his success.

"Yeah, I mean, I try to emulate my technique to his (Sachin Tendulkar). I mean, I'm obviously not a big guy. I'm not really going to get any big strides in. I try to be efficient in terms of my movement. Sometimes it gets me into trouble. But I think for me, that's generally what works. I try to play the ball as close to my body as possible. Yeah, kind of hope that that's going to work," Bavuma told the broadcaster after the end of the day's play.

For South Africa, the top three contributed just 17 runs, forcing Bavuma to play the knock of a saviour. The skipper admitted that it was one of his best knocks for South Africa in Test cricket.

"Yeah, definitely one of my better ones. I think looking at the situation of the game, and I think personally as well, I found myself a lot in that type of situation, coming in early, trying to manage myself to kind of scramble through to a 50 or 60, but I think what was nice was my ability just to take it even further and make it count," he asserted.

It wasn't just Bavuma who bailed South Africa out of a tough situation. Later, Marco Jansen (85) and Simon Harmer (82) played pivotal innings to give the hosts the edge in the contest.

Featured Video Of The Day

CWG 2026 Weightlifting Gold Medallist, Mirabai Chanu Get Hero's Welcome in Delhi