Proteas spinner Keshav Maharaj hopes to get more overs under his belt as his team enter final preparations ahead of the second Test against England in Manchester on Thursday.
Bowling just 12 overs, and conceding 35 runs in England’s second innings, the left-arm spinner took two crucial wickets, which started the slide after which the hosts slumped to an innings and 12-run defeat against SA in the opening encounter at Lord’s.
Asked if he expected to bowl more overs on the usually drier Old Trafford pitch, Maharaj said while the final decision would rest with Dean Elgar and the game situation, he would be ready to go should he be called upon by the captain.
“I think the seamers did an amazing job [at the start], so full credit to them. I know my time will come where I am presented with the ball to bowl my spell. In terms of the conditions here, the covers have been on for pretty much most of the day, so we haven’t really seen too much, so fingers crossed the rain subsides and we get an opportunity to look at the wicket.
“I am sure that if the seamers don’t strike [early] or there is a period for me to bowl, Dean will throw the ball to me and I can have a nice long spell,” Maharaj said on Tuesday.
Maharaj said the decision to bowl with the newer ball was taken by Elgar as he felt the left-arm orthodox bowler may be more of a threat in the second innings. “We usually get some turn with the old ball, so we thought that with the harder, newer ball, it might bounce a little more.
“Dean had a chat with me in the dressing room before going out again, telling me I should be ready because I may get an opportunity to bowl with the newer ball, and fortunately it came and it paid dividends,” the Dolphins man said.
Questioned on the approach England will take in the second Test and how SA will look to combat that offensive, Maharaj said their focus is to ensure they could do their basics consistently and execute their game plans to the best of their abilities.
“We know England are fierce competitors, and we know they will do everything to bounce back. Every team that is 1-0 down in a series has the potential to bounce back.
“We are just focusing on our plans and processes, it is pretty much [similar to] what we did in the first game in terms of execution and how we went about our cricket, so hopefully we can replicate much of that in this next match and be on the winning side of things again,” he said.
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