He also congratulated Rahul Dravid on his first win as India's head coach in South Africa.
Former India cricketer and former selector Sarandeep Singh backed the Indian cricket team to win the ongoing three-match Test series with a 3-0 margin in South Africa after the tourists breached the Centurion fortress by winning the Boxing Day Test by 113 runs on December 30.
Despite day two being completely washed out due to rain in Centurion, Team India managed to wrap up the first Test match with more than one and a half sessions to spare on day five against South Africa to take a 1-0 lead in the ongoing Test series.
Sarandeep Singh told ANI: “Yes, we can see this Indian team winning the Test series 3-0 because South Africa's batting is not looking that great. Only Dean Elgar, Aiden Markram, and Quinton de Kock can chip in but if all the pressure is on these three then the team can't win because Indian bowling is very strong. It is due to rain that the match got over on the fifth day otherwise you will see matches getting over in 3 or 4 days.”
It is India’s first-ever Test win at the SuperSport Park in Centurion, and the former selector was impressed with the way Kohli managed his pacers in the first Test. He also congratulated Rahul Dravid on his first win as India's head coach in South Africa.
He further said, “Yes, it is big news. I think this is the first Asian team to win in Centurion. A big congratulations to Rahul Dravid on his first win as coach in SA. It is very difficult to beat SA in their country. It is a huge moment for the Indian cricket team. The way Virat Kohli handled the side and the way our fast bowlers bowled especially Mohammed Shami.
Jasprit Bumrah got an ankle injury but he came back and bowled well and surprise package Mohammed Siraj. We all talk about batters but look at our fast bowlers. It was a combined effort by the Indian team. SA bowlers bowled well but look at our bowlers. Credit goes to Ravi Shastri also and now the team is under Rahul Dravid. Even Bharat Arun deserves credit for fast bowlers. The way he worked with them for 4-5 years.”
Singh also lauded Mayank Agarwal (60) and KL Rahul (123) for the performance against South Africa in Centurion.
He added, “Even Mayank Agarwal played well after sitting out in so many Test matches. Talking about KL Rahul he is improving with every match, series. Earlier he used to open in T20s and now Test matches. Credit shouldn't only go to Dravid but also to batting coach Vikram Rathour.”
He signed off by saying, “He spends a lot of time with batters. Even the lower is batting very well. KL Rahul is very focused and hard-working. He is a complete player who can play as an opener and also as a middle-order batsman. It is not that he can only play as an opener.”
(With ANI Inputs)