Jansen blows steam to secure Proteas advantage over India
The South Africa all-rounder dissects how he got past missing out on a maiden Test century to securing a six-for in Guwahati.
Having watched a thick inside edge off Kuldeep Yadav’s googly take the bails off behind him, Marco Jansen was left distraught towards the end of Day 2 of South Africa’s second Test against India.
The lanky all-rounder had notched his highest-ever Test score but missed out on what would’ve been a century for the ages. The 25-year-old however, arrived at the ACA Stadium on Day 3 inspired as ever, ready to make a difference with the ball.
His figures of 6/48 were enough to validate a quick turnaround, which Jansen spilled the beans on at the end of day’s play during a vital ICC World Test Championship series.
“Yesterday, when we went to the hotel, I was just trying to blow some steam off,” Jansen told reporters.
“I called my family, called my brother, sister, mom, dad, you name it. Just to get all those feelings out.”
Despite a fresh outlook, Jansen wasn’t entirely sure things would go in South Africa’s favour the way they did.
Although Keshav Maharaj nabbed the early wicket of opener KL Rahul, the hosts were still in a strong position in the opening session with 95 runs on the board at the loss of one wicket.
Yashasvi Jaiswal seemed in rhythm, displaying flair and flamboyance in his innings of 58 before Simon Harmer bagged twin blows in no time.
Jansen would then open the floodgates, running through the Indian middle order, dismissing Dhruv Jurel, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Ravindra Jadeja and skipper Rishabh Pant.
“And then, I don't know if I thought that today was going to turn out the way it did,” Jansen said.
Opening up on the absence of Kagiso Rabada in the pace attack, Jansen added, “Obviously, not having KG [Kagiso] is a big loss.
“Not having KG definitely adds a bit of responsibility and pressure on myself and Mulder in particular.
“But for me, whether KG plays or doesn’t play, I always try to think of myself as someone who can break the game open for the team.
“I just try and give my best every time I get the opportunity and try and put the team in a winning position.”
A six-wicket haul, third-best figures by a South Africa bowler in a Test in India, coupled with Jansen’s first innings batting exploits, have laid the foundation for the visitors to pursue their first-ever Test series win in the country since 2000.
When asked if his dismissal at 93 was a case of the nervous 90s, Jansen replied, “I was nervous when I had 20.
“It’s funny, when I walked in, after the first three balls, Sen (Senuran Muthusamy) looked at me and he said, ‘Just breathe’. I thought I was very calm. But he told me to breathe, and it helped me massively.
Jansen revels in Proteas glory | WTC25 Final
Marco Jansen opens up after South Africa's World Test Championship Final win at Lord's.
“I have never been in the 90s before in first-class cricket, never mind Test cricket. I was definitely nervous, but I was nervous in my 20s, 30s, 40s, 50s, and 60s as well.
“I was nervous all the way through. But I think, in retrospect, next time I’d rather get caught on the boundary than defending the ball, trying to push it to one.
“But that’s a learning I take out of it. The whole experience was fun. The ground was amazing, and yeah, playing against the best in the world and performing, it’s very nice to get that.”
As things stand, South Africa lead by a staggering 314 runs, with all ten wickets intact in their second innings.
