Ken Borland

Not chasing wickets but focusing on his lines and lengths was the key to left-arm spinner Keshav Maharaj’s extraordinary performance that ripped through Bangladesh on the final day of the first Test against South Africa at Kingsmead in Durban on Monday.

Bangladesh resumed on a poor 11/3 on the final morning and crashed to a venue record low of 53 all out in 55 minutes as Maharaj took 7/32 in 10 overs, the best figures in Tests between the two countries.

“There was a bit of spin on offer but it was more about bowling consistent lines and lengths,” Maharaj said. “You know you’re going to get wickets all the time, it was just about being patient.

“I was in a good space with how the ball was coming out, but when you don’t get reward, like in the first innings, then it can lead to a bit of frustration.

“But the emotion I showed was more about my hunger and desire to win a game for my country. It’s hard work and toil and about sticking to the processes,” Maharaj said after the second-best haul of wickets of his career.

Maharaj and Simon Harmer became the first pair of South Africans to be the only two bowlers used to bowl out a team, and Maharaj said when you have a man with 750 first-class wickets at the other end, it is advisable to tap into his knowledge as well.

“It’s always nice having a double-spin attack and the control of Simon was especially good. He had a really good game and he has come back a different type of bowler and player.

“He’s a world-class spinner, you can see that with the shapes and lines of his bowling. He’s a huge addition to the team and it’s nice to see how we each see things out there.

“He has good ideas, he’s fun in the changeroom and just a great asset to have in the team. My local knowledge can then take things a bit further and it was good to see our adaptability to get us across the line.

“It was very emotional for me, I love playing here in Durban, my home, and it was even more special for my family to be here.

“Our record has not been great here, so I’ll be very pleased if we have changed some mindsets and hopefully the guys now want to come back here,” Maharaj said.

Routing the opposition for just 53 in 55 minutes on the final day made for a memorable triumph for the Proteas over Bangladesh on Monday, but the fact the remarkable victory in the first Test happened at Kingsmead will add to the elation for Dean Elgar and his team.

Keshav Maharaj destroyed the Bangladesh batting with 7/32 in 10 overs, the best ever figures for a South African bowler against them, and was ably supported by Simon Harmer (9-3-21-3) as the Proteas surged to victory by 220 runs.

It is only the Proteas’ second win at Kingsmead in their last 10 Tests there dating back to 2009; as a venue it had become a nemesis for them and finally enjoying a tremendous win at their hoodoo ground no doubt contributed to the emotion the players displayed.

“I’ve caught quite a few hidings here,” Elgar, who seemed to be choking back tears during the post-match presentation, said later. “This is the first Test I’ve been part of a winning side here.

“So it’s nice to have victory on our side for a change. The way we played is not the style we are generally used to or the way we want to play, but we showed a lot of character and the resources to adapt.

“Fast bowling is still our prime source of attack, but we play quite a lot in the subcontinent so it’s great to have two spinners bowling in tandem like Keshav and Simon did.

“How awesome was it to see them have the ball on a string and absolutely dominating. It was great to see them competing at such high levels and I think most batting line-ups would have had a tough task against them,” Elgar said.

South African cricket has certainly undergone a sea change in terms of mindset towards using spinners. Given the assistance that an excellent Kingsmead pitch also provided the seam bowlers, Elgar could have resorted to type and backed his pacemen more, especially with the new ball.

“Even if the IPL guys were here, Keshav and Simon would still have bowled most of the overs,” Elgar stated. “My style of captaincy is to play positive cricket and to be ruthless.

“It’s about making bold, brash decisions to take the players out of their comfort zone. It was purely my gut feel to give the spinners the new ball, and the coaches allow me to do me during the game.

“I want to see players put their hands up and make big contributions for the team. I could have bowled the seamers, but I wanted to be ruthless.

“It’s about exposing the players to the level I expect them to play at, and the only way guys coming in are going to know what is needed at this level is through exposure,” Elgar said.

Keshav Maharaj took wickets in each of his first three overs of the day to send Bangladesh crashing to a miserable 53 all out and giving South Africa an overwhelming 220-run victory early on the fifth and final day of the first Test at Kingsmead in Durban on Monday.

Left-arm spinner Maharaj finished with 7/32 in 10 overs, the best ever figures for South Africa against Bangladesh, and combined with off-spinner Simon Harmer (9-3-21-3) to send the tourists crashing from their overnight woes of 11/3, their last 7 wickets falling in just 13 overs and 55 minutes.

Overnight batsman Mushfiqur Rahim (0) failed to see out the first over as the fifth ball, a trademark Maharaj delivery that slid straight on with the arm, trapped him lbw.

Liton Das (2) lamely drove Maharaj to mid-on in his next over, but Maharaj went to his eighth five-wicket haul in Tests with a tremendous, almost unplayable delivery that bowled Yasir Ali (5). Quicker and flatter but still drifting in, the ball then ripped viciously across the right-hander and knocked over his off-stump.

Harmer, who took the first four wickets to fall in the first innings, had Mehidy Hasan Miraz (0) caught at slip and top-scorer Nazmul Hossain Shanto was stumped by Kyle Verreynne for 26 to bring the tailenders to the crease.

That went as you would expect with Maharaj wrapping up the innings for the second-best figures of his career, behind his 9/129 in Sri Lanka in 2018.

Bangladesh’s total was their second-lowest ever and the worst at Tests in Kingsmead, the previous mark being India’s infamous 66 all out on a greentop in 1996/97.

New history was witnessed at the ground on Monday and this time it was spinners who you will remember rather than fast bowlers.

South Africa may have collapsed to just 204 all out in their second innings, but the 69-run lead they had in the kitty has left Bangladesh with a stiff target to chase and the tourists’ batsmen will find no shelter from the Kingsmead pitch either as there is sharp turn on offer and the seamers are also posing challenges in the first Test in Durban.

Needing 274 for victory, Bangladesh had crashed to 11/3 at stumps on the fourth day on Sunday, as Proteas spinners Keshav Maharaj (3-0-7-2) and Simon Harmer (3-1-4-1) caused devastation to the top-order.

South Africa’s batting coach Justin Sammons unpacked the challenges their batsmen faced on Sunday, with conditions likely to only get tougher on Monday’s final day.

“The ball is gripping and it has turned more as the game as gone on. Against seam, the scoring rate is tough to get up if the bowlers hit those probing lengths, hitting straight is not going to give you much reward,” Sammons said.

“And there’s a bit of reverse swing on offer as well, which makes it really tricky. Bangladesh, with the lengths they hit, showed their skill and their ability to make the ball tail towards the end as well.

“Spinner Mehidy Hasan Miraz bowled with great discipline and control as well. So we had to bat really well to get to 204.

“But if you dig in then it’s not the sort of pitch you will get blasted out on,” Sammons said.

Although the fading light prevented South Africa from using their pace bowlers with the new ball at the start of the Bangladesh innings, it will be interesting to see if the Proteas go with the successful Maharaj/Harmer combination first thing on Monday morning, or give Lizaad Williams and Duanne Olivier a burst with the shiny ball.

Sammons said there had been some talk about starting with one seamer and one spinner on Sunday afternoon.

Maharaj’s two wickets saw him go past fellow left-hander Paul Adams as the leading wicket-taker among South African spinners post-isolation, with 136 in 41 Tests at an average of 32.93.

Captain Dean Elgar again anchored South Africa’s batting effort as he completed half-centuries in both innings, with his 64 providing a great platform for the innings.

He and Keegan Petersen (36) combined for a 68-run second-wicket partnership, the biggest of the innings, while debutant Ryan Rickelton showed good composure under pressure as he scored 39 not out while wickets tumbled at the other end.

Offie Mehidy (35-6-85-3) and fast bowler Ebadot Hossain (13-1-40-3) combined most effectively with the ball for Bangladesh. Taskin Ahmed, who had to periodically go off the field to have a shoulder injury treated, chipped in manfully with 2/24 in 11 overs.