‘Little bit of crazy’: ‘Mystery’ behind genius of Proteas skipper... and why Aussies respect him so much

As Temba Bavuma was assessing South African cricket’s finest triumph at Lord’s a year ago, he paused before noting that to walk a mile in his shoes would not be the smoothest of treks for any cricketer.

The first black captain to lead the Proteas, the 36-year-old steered the rainbow nation to its first ever World Test Championship triumph when stunning Australia in a thrilling decider in June last year.

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Viewed by the Aussies as a man of mystery, Bavuma describes himself as a man who prefers to lead by his actions rather than his words and in the final he demonstrated his toughness by grinding out a big innings despite battling a dodgy hamstring.

The leader of a land of complexity, he has shown it is possible to go from playing street cricket in Langa, a township outside Cape Town, to captaining his country on the biggest stage in cricket.

But to do so has required significant grit and fortitude as much as it has immense talent with Bavuma overcoming setbacks to refocus a nation that had lost its way in Test cricket and lead it to the top of the world.

“It’s not an easy job being the captain of South Africa. It’s not all that smooth being in my shoes,” Bavuma said.

“It takes a little bit of crazy at times to kind of deal with everything that comes (with it) but I think it’s also a matter of just taking it within your stride.

“Yes, it can be burdensome, but it’s still somewhat of a privilege to carry those types of expectations as well as pressure.”

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A trailblazer who became the first black South African cricketer to score a century in 2016 in a Test against England in Cape Town, he is mindful of his standing as a role model.

The city whose shadow he grew up in never imagining how far he could spread his wings acknowledged this when honouring him in its civic awards for his contribution to cricket but also to connection earlier this year.

“I think about those days. I mean, I never pictured myself playing here at Lord’s. I could only fantasise about it,” he said after the famous triumph.

“It really was unreachable for us. Being captain, that was never a dream of mine. And now to have this opportunity, now, to be in this position where you know you’ve won the (WTC) mace for the country, I don’t think you can really write those types of stories. That’s for the man above.

“I think for me, it was always about just the passion of the game. That’s been my biggest thing, that’s been my biggest driver. And I hope I can inspire a lot of people, not just in our country, but all the other nations as well.”

A FORMIDABLE RECORD

As Bavuma prepares to lead South Africa in a three Test series against its greatest rival beginning in Durban today, he has the respect of Australia.

Not too long ago South Africa, with its finances filled by gambling sponsorships and a burgeoning T20 league, appeared to have moved on from Test cricket when sending a third-string team to New Zealand for a series.

But under the stewardship of Bavuma and coach Shukri Conrad, the Proteas orchestrated a phenomenal turnaround in the most recent World Test Championship cycle.

Some criticised the presence of South Africa in the WTC decider, stating they had followed an easier path, but they did complete a sweep against India and then upstaged the Australians when enjoying the best of the conditions.

Bavuma’s captaincy record does not lie. The South Africans have won 11 of the 12 Tests during his reign and are ranked second behind the Australians as leading nations vie for a spot in next year’s WTC decider at The Oval.

The Aussies note that they know little about Bavuma outside of what they have seen on the field, in part because he is not a franchise cricketer and does not play in the Indian Premier League, which tends to melt boundaries.

But Josh Hazlewood, the superb Australian fast bowler, has played a significant amount of Test cricket against Bavuma over the past decade and respects what he has done for South African cricket.

“He’s been captain for a little bit now as well, but he’s a little bit of an unknown character, I guess. We don’t see much of him,” he told foxsports.com.au.

“We don’t see him in franchise cricket, as opposed to your Marco Jansens, (Kagiso) Rabadas, the guys who play franchise cricket. You get to know them when they are on your team. But Temba is someone that goes under the radar a bit.”

STEPPING UP WHEN IT COUNTS

While Bavuma has only made four Test centuries in 66 appearances and averages 38 with the bat, Hazlewood said the South African skipper had the happy trait of stepping up for his nation when they needed him the most.

The thrilling decider at Lord’s last year, which culminated in a wonderful celebration for the victorious team as success-starved South African fans celebrated with glee at the home of cricket, was a case in point.

In a low-scoring match, Bavuma contributed in both innings and scored more than a quarter of the 402 runs his nation needed to secure a five-wicket win.

“I feel like when he gets runs, it’s always the hardest part,” Hazlewood said.

“It might be a green wicket when you’ve got them two or three for not many and he comes in and gets that 60 that’s not convincing, it’s not pretty, but it gets it done. I think that’s a real trait that you need in your team. You need one guy like that, (someone) who makes a difference in a low-scoring game.”

Delivering when it matters is a crucial trait for any batsman, Australian great Greg Chappell said, and carries more weight than simply an average alone.

“That is not a bad thing. I mean, I played with Redders (Ian Redpath) and that was Redders,” Chappell said.

“When you thought he should have got runs, he didn’t get runs. And then you play on a wicket that was just hard work, and Redders had made runs.

“Bavuma, he’s a mystery man, really. But his record, he’s just got better and better as he’s gone along.

“He didn’t look anything special when he started but he’s just kept growing … (and) what I just keep seeing is that he is still playing and he’s making runs, and he’s actually got better and better as the years have gone on. So, he’s got something.”

That something is toughness according to Ashwell Prince, the former South African star who was at Lord’s last year as an assistant coach.

“He has had to fight throughout his career and this could be a defining moment for his career, I believe. It is the biggest stage in terms of Test cricket,” Prince said.

CONNECTING A COLLECTIVE

Toughness at the crease aside, creating harmony among a team where Kagiso Rabada is the standout talent is the reason South Africa has been shining on the Test stage.

To their great lament they do not play enough Test cricket, with the series against Australia their first at home since the brilliant triumph 16 months ago.

But when they do, Bavuma has them humming according to opener Prince, noting that while former sides have been studded with stars, this Proteas unit works together extremely well.

“I think this team’s greatest strength is the unity they have in this camp,” he said.

“They are well aware that South Africa have had much greater individual players but they have got something special going on up in that dressing room. That helps them to drag each other along.”

Bavuma prefers to lead as a collective, allowing others within the side to flourish or take ownership of certain areas of the team.

“I think leading through a collective, identifying guys within the team and allowing them to lead within their space (is important),” he said.

“That’s something I think that has allowed me to be a lot more successful as a batter but yeah, I’m not a big talker. I’m more about action.

“For me, it’s always about the team, doing what I think is best for the team, and also wanting to be the guy for the team, I think, in times where there’s pressure, where you can make a decision, where you’re kind of giving another one the opportunity.

“It’s easy to do that in pressure moments, but it takes a certain level of courage to be able to look past what you’re feeling physically, and still try to find a way to get the job done.”

Hazlewood says his observations stem simply from playing against South Africa under Bavuma, but has no doubt they present as a well-rounded team under the veteran.

“(With his) captaincy and not knowing much about him, but from an outsider’s point of view, I guess that they won the WTC last time and I feel like it’s very much a team now in South Africa,” he said.

“I obviously can’t comment on the past and I haven’t been inside their rooms, but that’s how it looks from the outside. They look as though they’re moving forward as a whole.

“I don’t know whether he’s had much to do with that, but I assume so (with him) being the captain, and that’s sort of I think probably his strengths there.”

Former captain Dean Elgar was succeeded by Bavuma and told Fox Cricket’s podcast The Follow On recently that the incumbent’s “record speaks for itself at the moment”.

“He’s someone that maybe takes it all in his stride at the moment,” Elgar said.

“He doesn’t look too far ahead, which I think is a great strength of his. I think he’s also become a much better batter by taking on the role (and) I think he’s got a lot more support than what I had when I was captain.

“But I think he’s done brilliantly really. You can’t be critical of what’s happened. I mean, we’re the world number one and you have got to give him massive credit for that leading (into) the series against the Aussies now.”