He also lauded Faf du Plessis for his 199 in Centurion Test win over SL.
South Africa Test captain Quinton de Kock has stressed the need to find the right balance between youth and experience for a better team combination to get the desired results in Test cricket.
He also heaped praise on Player of the Match Faf du Plessis who scored 199 in the Boxing Day Test to help South Africa secure a massive win of one innings and 45 runs against Sri Lanka on Tuesday (December 29) at Centurion. He also hailed his young bowlers’ efforts in the first Test.
It was a huge win for South Africa at SuperSport Park in Centurion, as the hosts achieved success over Lanka with a new-look bowling attack including the young guns like Wiaan Mulder and Lutho Sipamla.
De Kock told reporters after the first Test win: “You need to find that balance (between youth and experience) and Faf came out and showed his leadership qualities. He has been in a lot of pressure situations and there is no better player in the team for that.”
While Lungi Ngidi managed to 2 wickets, Mulder scalped 3 wickets and debutant Sipamla was the most impressive, finishing with 6 wickets in his debut Test match against Sri Lanka and De Kock was highly impressed with particularly these two young players in the Boxing Day Test.
The skipper further said, “(Mulder’s) results speak for themselves, any team with an all-rounder that can add value with the ball and the bat is always key. It was great to see a youngster come out and bowl with maturity and intent. It was just a Test match debut nerves. We spoke to him and he came back really nicely. He showed great character and it was great to see his fight.”
Noteworthy, Kagiso Rabada is now fit and set to return for the second and final Test to be played from January 3 in Johannesburg against Sri Lanka.
(With Reuters Inputs)