Bangladesh’s newly appointed batting specialist Dale Benkenstein has urged the batters to adapt quickly to South African conditions, warning that they cannot afford to waste even a single session against the world’s top-ranked Test side.
Bangladesh will face South Africa in the first Test in Johannesburg on Saturday, with the second match scheduled to begin in Centurion on November 23.
Benkenstein, who joined the team earlier this week, believes the biggest challenge will be handling the pace and bounce of South African pitches.
“The skill set that South Africa have, they’re going to come with pace and bounce,” Benkenstein told reporters after Bangladesh’s training session.
“The main thing in the first two days is really get into the Test match. We don’t want to start after lunchtime; we want to be from ball one making sure that we’re really sharp.”
“With two Tests, you can’t waste a whole session trying to work things out. So adapting very quickly, I would say, is the most important thing,” urged Benkenstein.
Bangladesh enter the series after losing their two-match home Test series against West Indies 1-0. Their batting struggled at times during the series, raising questions about their ability to handle South Africa’s pace attack.
Benkenstein, however, believes the players have enough experience and technical ability to compete.
“What I’ve seen is a very talented batting group, technically very sound. I think the real test will be how we adapt to these conditions and how quickly we adapt,” he said.
The former South African allrounder also pointed to Bangladesh’s recent experience against quality fast bowlers as a source of confidence.
“They will have a lot of confidence having faced Starc, Hazlewood over the last couple of months, and the West Indians have some fast bowlers as well,” he said.
When asked whether Bangladesh’s batting problems were more psychological than technical, Benkenstein agreed that belief would play an important role.
“I wasn’t there for the West Indies tour, but I think they are talking a lot about Australia, and I think there’s a lot of confidence coming in from that. You’ve got to come here and you have to believe. You’ve got to believe that you can adapt, that you can compete with South Africa,” he added.
Despite having only two days to work with the players, Benkenstein expressed satisfaction with their attitude and preparation.
“It’s been a great experience, a fantastic group to work with. They’ve welcomed me,” he said.
