"They get the most out of the conditions, which our bowlers aren't able to" - Aakash Chopra on South African pacers' height advantage vs India
Aakash Chopra feels the South African seamers' height advantage helped them extract more from the Centurion pitch than the Indian pacers.
The Proteas thrashed the visitors by an innings and 32 runs on Day 3 of the first Test in Centurion on Thursday, December 28. They bundled out Rohit Sharma and company for 245 and 131 in their two innings. On the flip side, the Indian bowlers allowed the hosts to post a massive 408 runs the only time they batted.
Reviewing the game in a video shared on his YouTube channel, Chopra claimed that the relatively short-statured Indian bowlers couldn't make the most of the conditions. He explained (2:15):
"This Centurion pitch had a lot of help (for the bowlers). Some balls took off, the way Dean Elgar got out to Shardul Thakur or the way Yashasvi Jaiswal got out off Nandre Burger's bowling."
The former Indian opener added:
"As their fast bowlers are tall, they get the most out of the conditions, which our bowlers aren't able to. Our bowlers are slightly skiddy. They aren't that tall and they don't get as much help from the pitch that the opposing team takes."
Jasprit Bumrah (4/69) and Mohammed Siraj (2/91), to an extent, were the only Indian bowlers to put some pressure on the Protea batters. Shardul Thakur and Prasidh Krishna picked up a total of two wickets and conceded 194 runs in the combined 39 overs they bowled.
"A player made in the mold of Michael Atherton" - Aakash Chopra lauds Dean Elgar's gritty knock
![Dean Elgar's 185-run knock virtually knocked India out of the game. [P/C: AP]](https://statico.sportskeeda.com/editor/2023/12/5de9f-17038222156312-1920.jpg?w=500)
Reflecting on South Africa's batting, Aakash Chopra praised Dean Elgar for playing a tenacious knock. He elaborated (1:20):
"Dean Elgar is like an old-fashioned dogged cricketer, a player made in the mold of Michael Atherton. He won't play if you bowl outside the off-stump, will play the cut if the ball is slightly short, and will accumulate a lot of runs if you bowl on his legs. It's very typical of openers."
Chopra added that Elgar and Marco Jansen's partnership virtually sealed the game in South Africa's favor. He said:
"Good Test openers play like this and Dean Elgar also did that job. He played properly and for a long time. When the third day's play started, it seemed like India could come back in the game, but for that Dean Elgar and Marco Jansen had to get out. Both didn't get out and they got such a big lead, it was over."
Elgar (185) and Jansen (84*) added 111 runs for the sixth wicket. Their partnership helped the Proteas take a huge 163-run first-innings lead. The hosts then bundled out the visitors for 131 to complete a comprehensive win and take an unassailable 1-0 lead in the two-match series.