Sabbir: Every captain would elect to field in South Africa

Bangladesh batsman Sabbir Rahman informed that the Tigers were surprised to see a flat wicket at Senwes Park. The right-hander said they thought it would be pace-bowling friendly track and hence the decision to field first was taken by Test captain Mushfiqur Rahim. “We did not expect this kind of wicket. It’s a flat wicket. We were not able to bowl many wicket-taking deliveries. We tried to bowl in good areas and check the runs. That was our target,” Sabbir told the media during the post-day press conference following day one of their first Test match against South Africa in Potchefstroom Thursday. “Its difficult to judge a wicket after just watching. You have to play to understand the wicket. We understand about the wicket after playing it. Generally South African wickets offer more grass. But we were surprised as the wicket was just like Bangladesh's. Hope we can make early turnaround on day two,” he said.

---

Also read: Misjudgment of pitch or defensive approach?

---

Sabbir admitted it was a natural and premeditated decision to bowl first as every captain does the same after winning the toss against the Proteas at their backyard. “Cloudy weather does not force you to field first. If you are playing in South Africa, every captain will decide to field first. There is nothing much to say. Probably we did not figure out that the wicket will be this flat. So we tried to restrict their run-rate as much as possible,” he explained.

---

Watch: Game on for Bangladesh vs SA first Test-first day

---

However, stats reveal a different picture as captains of both South Africa and the visiting sides only elected to bowl first 65 times in South Africa while on 156 occasions, the skipper decided to take first guard. South Africa were confident about the wicket and would have batted first if they had won the toss. So Bangladesh’s decision surprised everyone. With that said, Sabbir stated that it is difficult to judge a wicket after just "watching". Moving forward, what sort of a target should the Tigers eye for restricting the Proteas?

---

Also read: Dominant South Africa as Bangladesh ponder what might have been

---

Sabbir answered if the Proteas bat for three days then the host can well and truly score 700 or even 1000. The 25-year old said South Africa can even bat for five days if Bangladesh do not bowl well in the upcoming days. “If they bat for three days then we don’t know how many runs they will score, probably 700 or 1000. We don’t have any target. We have to restrict them for as low as possible," he said. "Yes, they can bat for three days. If we don’t bowl well then they can even bat for five days as well. So we have to bowl in good areas to restrict them and take wickets,” he concluded.