The on-going Test series between South Africa and Australia has entered its final phase with South African having an upper hand in the final and fourth Test of the series after the end of Day 1, thanks to opener Aiden Markram’s knock of 152. Despite the fact that the series has witnessed a bunch of controversies in the recent past, the Proteas Markram has managed to keep his focus on the game.
On Friday, Aiden’s innings helped South Africa to finish the day with a respectable total of 313/6 despite some hiccups in the final session. The right-handed batsman’s knock gathered lots of praises from around the world and he got a special mention from India skipper Virat Kohli who appreciated Markram’s knock on social media. Taking to Twitter, Kohli wrote, “Aiden Markram 👌👏.”
Aiden Markram 👌👏
— Virat Kohli (@imVkohli) March 30, 2018
Markram later acknowledged Virat’s praise and labeled it as a “special feeling”. As quoted by ICC, Aiden said, “It’s quite a special feeling. There are a lot of players that I look up to who are a bit older than me and he (Kohli) is one of them. His competitiveness is something to admire and his motivation to keep scoring runs is something I’ve tried to take on board.”
Also read: Aiden Markram Wasn’t Worried About Australia’s Sledging
Currently, the Proteas are leading the series by 2-1 and would look to stamp their dominance with another victory in Johannesburg to wrap up the series in their favor. It will be South Africa’s first ever series win against the Aussies at home. The visiting team suffered a set back when captain Steve Smith, his deputy David Warner and opener Cameron Bancroft were suspended by Cricket Australia for the ball-tampering fiasco.
While Smith and Warner have been banned for 12 months from playing international cricket, Bancroft has handed a ban of nine months. Moreover, both Smith and Warner were barred by the BCCI from the upcoming edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL)well well.
Also read: Steve Smith Gathers Sympathy
Smith and Warner both were the captains of Rajasthan Royals Sunrisers Hyderabad respectively in IPL. Royals later handed over the captaincy to Ajinkya Rahane while SRH gave the baton to Kiwi skipper Kane Williamson.
