Sanjay Manjrekar, a former cricket player, is not pleased with India’s performance in the two-match Test series against South Africa. The Proteas pacers rocked the visitors in the first Test at Centurion, and Rohit Sharma led his team to victory in the second Test, which saw South Africa bowled out for 55 and 176 runs, respectively.
But if he had been the team’s captain or coach, Sanjay Manjrekar said he would have been dissatisfied. Although India ultimately fell short of making history—they are still seeking their first Test series victory in the rainbow nation—he continued, saying that this was the most defeatable South African team. The 58-year-old expressed dissatisfaction over the teams’ lack of Test matches and said the three-match ODI series wasn’t necessary.
“If I were the captain or the coach, I would consider it a regret. The South African teams that India faced in the past were formidable opponents. This South African side was the easiest to defeat. In an interview with ESPNcricinfo, Manjrekar stated that Dean Elgar’s 185 stopped India from making true history.
“I said previously as well that there was no purpose for a three-match ODI series between the Twenty20 internationals and the Test given that it wasn’t even the year of the ODI World Cup,” he continued.
Test cricket is not regarded as highly important in South Africa. Sanjay Manjrekar
There is a lot of talk in the cricket world about South Africa’s plan to take a reserve team to the SA20 in New Zealand. Numerous former cricket players have denounced the action since Manjrekar revealed that the Proteas place little value on Test cricket and that the hosts would have lost the opening Test against India if Dean Elgar hadn’t been included in the selection.
“This South African squad would be different without Dean Elgar. In the first test, they would have lost. I don’t think things will get much better for Test cricket because they don’t value it as much. Sanjay Manjrekar added, “The bowling wasn’t very good either.