Follow UsShukri Conrad will be called one of the most successful South African Test coaches to have ever existed. He won the World Test Championship (WTC) in 2023-25 and followed it up with a first ever win in Pakistan after 19 years.
With his team winning the Kolkata Test against India, they have now won a Test in India after a gap of 15 years as well. With a series in Bangladesh already in 2024, he now has wins in the entire subcontinent except Sri Lanka, where his team is yet to visit.
Rating the win at Eden Gardens at par with his WTC title win at Lord’s, Conrad, in the post-match press conference said, “We won the World Test Championship final earlier in the year against Australia at Lord’s, but this is right up there for us.
“Coming to India, playing at Eden Gardens, doing something we haven’t done for 15 years. This is right up there,” he added.
Praising his team for their ‘never give up’ attitude, Conrad said, “We might not have the ability that a lot of teams have. But we certainly make up for it with our ability to play as a unit and the resilience and belief that we show, and that we never give up. I am so proud of the group.”
But one win was enough to please Conrad. He said, “Job is far from done. You don’t come to a country to win a Test match; you obviously want to win the series.”
After a lot was said about the Kolkata wicket and how it was not the best suited one for a Test match, Conrad said that he was not surprised with the pitch at the Eden Gardens.
“I think when you come to India and the subcontinent, you expect wickets like this. So I don’t have a problem with wickets like this. You’ve still got to play well, you’ve got to bat well, you’ve got to find a way and thankfully, we found a way,” he said.
The two teams will play the second Test in Guwahati from November 22 onwards. While India will look to level the series, the Proteas will eye their first-ever series win in India since 2000.