South Africa captain Temba Bavuma has commented on the “unsavoury” remarks made by Jasprit Bumrah and Rishabh Pant during their recent tour of India, sharing that he received an apology from them for an offensive comment. He also shared that Proteas coach Shukri Conrad should have avoided the infamous “grovel” reference as well.

“I know from my side there was an incident where they said something in their language about me. At the end of the day two senior players, Rishabh Pant and Jasprit Bumrah, came and apologised,” Bavuma wrote in a column for ‘ESPNCricinfo’. “When the apology was made, I was in the dark about what it was about, I hadn’t heard it at the time and I needed to check in with our media manager about it.”

“What happens on the field, stays on the field but you don’t forget what is said. You use it as fuel and motivation, but there are no grudges per se,” Bavuma said. “Shukri also took some heat for his “grovel” remark. I was put under pressure by the media on that side, asking me to clarify the comments that were made. I thought Shukri was the man best positioned to give context to it all.”

READ HERE: Shubman Gill Breaks Silence On ODI Futures Of Rohit Sharma And Virat Kohli

“The first time I heard about it, it had that unsavoury taste to it, but I think it just reminded me how tough and competitive the Test series was and what it meant to certain individuals within the group. Shukri spoke after the ODI series and put that issue to bed. In hindsight, he said he could have chosen a better word and I agree with him,” he further added.

Temba Bavuma also said that he expected a tough series in India, and it is exactly what his team encountered as well.

“You don’t want to admit it as such but there are scars that still kind of live there. You just hope that you don’t reopen those wounds or relive those moments. There was that from a mental point of view, but also, with past experience, you know how tough it’s going to be,” Temba Bavuma concluded.