THE Proteas head into the second and final Test against Zimbabwe from 10am on Sunday in Bulawayo brimming with confidence after a dominant 328-run victory in the opening match.
While the Proteas aim to seal a 2-0 series win, much of the spotlight will fall on all-rounder Corbin Bosch, whose performance in the first Test has become a groot talking point.
The 30-year-old Bosch stunned mense with a maiden Test century and his first five-wicket haul at international level — only the second of his red-ball career. His showing marked a dramatic rise from years of inconsistency at domestic level to suddenly becoming a reliable force in Test cricket.
Bosch said: “I think in international cricket, you realise how fine your margins really are, especially coming from a bowling standpoint. I think watching the game at Lord’s [World Test Championship final] really inspired me a lot, watching how KG [Kagiso Rabada] and the Australian bowlers, went about their business in that game.
“It was incredibly special. It actually inspired me and made me realise how good these guys really are, competing with the best in the world.
“It made me believe that’s where I want to be, that's what I want to aspire to in my cricketing career - to be on that level [like] those guys were delivering day in, day out, time and time again.”
With Bosch finally coming to his own, that places Shukri Conrad in a difficult spot, a spot any coach would embrace.
Bosch is competing for the same spot as other quicks Nandre Burger, Anrich Nortje, Marco Jansen and Lungi Ngidi who are all world class bowlers.
Bosch said that he told Conrad that he means business and that he is fighting for a spot in the starting XI of the full-strength Proteas Test team.