South Africa coach Conrad on late declaration: Wanted to bat India completely out of the game

Murmurs of discontent had sprung up everywhere – on social media platforms, on the stands and even in the press box – as South Africa prolonged its second batting essay in the Guwahati Test against India on Tuesday.

South Africa’s lead had nearly touched the 400-run mark at Tea, starting from the overnight 314. As the second session began, many expected the visiting team to finally step on the accelerator and push for an outright win, and with it, 12 crucial WTC points.

But the Proteas continued to bide their time, as they played through the second session, adding 113 runs from the 30 overs.

Tristan Stubbs was the lead enforcer of South Africa’s watchful vigil. By Lunch, the No. 3 batter had blocked his way to 60, at a ponderous strike rate of 38.7.

The switch flipped only in the third session, as Stubbs launched into a 32-run assault assault that culminated in a long-awaited South African declaration, giving India a massive 549-run target.

As confirmed by Shukri Conrad, the visiting coach, the central reason why South Africa held back the declaration call was due to a quirk of nature – a narrow strip of sunlight that cuts across the Guwahati pitch, almost horizontally, in the final hour of play.

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Over the first three days of the Test, batters had found it hard in the closing moments of the game as the ball cut through the shaft of light and the two stretches of shadows that it separated.

“What we felt is that when the shadows come across the wicket in the evening, there’s something in it for the quick bowlers. So we didn’t want to declare too early and not be able to use that,” said Conrad after the end of play.

South Africa’s intuition proved to be pitch-perfect as India lost both its openers, Yashasvi Jaisal and KL Rahul, as the sun crept its way down.

The South African coach also admitted that the delayed declaration had a psychological connotation to it.

“Obviously, we wanted India to spend as much time on their feet out in the field. We wanted them to really grovel, to steal a phrase. Bat them completely out of the game and then say to them, ‘Well, come and survive on the last day and an hour this evening,’” said Conrad.

South Africa, of all teams, should know the devastating effect of this ploy. After all, in its last tour to India in 2019, it had suffered late-evening batting collapses in all three Tests, paving the way for an Indian clean sweep.

India batted first in all three games, playing deep into the second day, before rattling South Africa’s top-order in fading light. As it turned out, the shoe was on the other foot in Guwahati on Tuesday.

Despite the slight difference in context, it was a role reversal that captured the way this series has panned out so far.

As the second Test heads into the final day, South Africa has a chance to seal a series sweep few would have predicted.

Even if his team fails to close off the game and the whitewash on Wednesday, Conrad believes he wouldn’t regret the declaration decision.

“If tomorrow evening, it comes to that we have them eight down and people [might] say ‘told you so’. We’ve got to base it on our sound judgment, and if that doesn’t work out well, it doesn’t. I don’t think there’s right and wrong [decision] in any of this,” said Conrad.

He also pointed out that the Guwahati pitch has stayed ‘remarkably good’, while adding that South Africa will definitely go all out for a win on the final day

“We did expect it to deteriorate a little bit more. But, there’s just maybe a little bit more consistent spin now, more than anything else. So far, so good. But we also know that it’s not just that they’re not going to roll over. We’re going to have to be at our very best tomorrow. We’re gonna go all out for that win. Hopefully, Marco [Jansen] and the spinners can do the job tomorrow,” added Conrad.

Published on Nov 25, 2025