South Africa all-rounder Marco Jansen spoke of his love for the Test format, and stated that nothing can be taken for granted in cricket.
The 22-year-old has made fine progress in international cricket across formats, especially in Test cricket, wherein he has been highly resourceful with his swing and seam. One of the tallest bowlers going around at 6’ 8”, the left-arm quick lends great balance and variety to a highly skilled South African attack.
He is productive with the bat too, as he showcased in the first Tests against England at Lord’s last week, scoring a valuable 48 as the Proteas took the game by an innings and 12 runs. Jansen opened up on enjoying the game’s longest version.
“I enjoy the red-ball format. It’s the format where what you put in, you get out. If you bowl well, you will get wickets. If you bat well, you will score runs. That’s what I have enjoyed the most,”
he was quoted as saying by The Cricketer.
Jansen had bagged 19 wickets at 16.47 in his debut series against India at home in December-January, dismissing the likes of Virat Kohli, KL Rahul (thrice), Cheteshwar Pujara (twice) and Rishabh Pant (twice).
He returned two wickets in each innings at Lord’s, including the priced one of Joe Root in the first, who was undone by a ball that came in to be trapped leg-before.
“I didn’t expect the ball to swing that much. The plan was to stick around that off stump or fourth stump area and let the ball pass through there. If it nips back then it brings all dismissals into play and if it just straightens, you can nick him off. When you get the big names out, it’s always a good feeling,”
Jansen added.
South Africa outplayed an in-form England on all fronts to consolidate their top-positioning in the ongoing World Test Championship cycle. A win in the second Test at Old Trafford, beginning August 25, would seal them a series victory.
As for Jansen, the prime focus remains on carrying on with the hard-work without getting complacent.
“I wouldn’t say we are unbeatable. We put in the hard yards and we are still putting in the hard yards. We don’t take anything for granted because we know when we do that, Mother Cricket is going to kick you on the backside.”
Also read 👉 England vs South Africa, second Test – Preview and Prediction
