S Africa pacers lack reverse swing: Rabada

NEW DELHI: South Africa fast bowler Kagiso Rabada rued his side’s inability to tackle the pressure subjected on them by India in the first two Tests in Visakhapatnam and Pune.

“We’ve been put under immense pressure,” Rabada said ahead of the final Test, which begins on October 19 in Ranchi. “I don’t know if we can be put under more pressure than that.”

In both the Tests, India put South Africa under a pile of runs – 502-7d and 601-5d — in the first innings, with the tourists’ bowling attack proving ineffective. India triumphed in both the Tests by big margins to take an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match series.

Rabada, who has accounted for just four wickets in the two Tests, said that South Africa’s pacers lacked a major element — reverse swing. “They (India) got the ball to reverse and they bowled well as a collective,” Rabada said. “Their whole attack put pressure on us in every single aspect. Their spinners bowled well, and when the ball was reversing, their seamers could exploit that. We didn’t really get the ball to reverse, and that’s a major weapon of ours.”

With South Africa’s Test team looking to fill the gaps left by the retirements of Hashim Amla, AB de Villiers, Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel, Rabada called on the team’s youngsters to take the onus.