'Singlebloodymindedness': Shukri Conrad's fiery wake-up call after South Africa's 214-run defeat to Australia
toi
newspoint|14-10-2026
South Africa head coach Shukri Conrad wants his batters to develop a combination of intense focus and stubborn resistance after their 214-run defeat to Australia in the first Test at Kingsmead. Frustrated by a series of poor shot selections that contributed to the hosts' collapse, Conrad coined the term “singlebloodymindedness” to underline the attitude required to survive against a world-class bowling attack.
While Aiden Markram offered a lesson in patience with a determined second-innings knock of 75, Conrad believes the rest of the batting unit must learn to dig deeper when the pressure mounts. For the South African coach, the defeat was not merely about technical shortcomings but also about the mental discipline needed to succeed in Test cricket .
“Aiden showed us in the second innings that there’s nothing fancy about Test cricket,” Conrad told reporters after the match on Tuesday. “It’s that singlebloodymindedness- ‘I’ve got to bat for a day-and-a-half, irrespective of what it looks like’. Some of our batters can take a leaf out of his book.”
Markram's patience offers South Africa a blueprint
Markram stood out in South Africa's attempt to save the Test, spending just under six hours at the crease and facing 237 deliveries for his 75 runs. His innings was comfortably the longest stay by a South African batter during the fourth-innings effort.
Wiaan Mulder provided the next-best resistance, batting for more than two hours, while David Bedingham was the only other batter to spend more than an hour at the crease. Only Markram and Mulder faced more than 100 deliveries, highlighting the lack of sustained resistance from the rest of the batting order.
South Africa's problems had intensified on the third day when they lost Markram, Temba Bavuma and Bedingham within 9.3 overs, adding just 15 runs during that collapse. Their final six wickets then fell for 129 runs, leaving the hosts unable to mount a serious challenge. The manner of the dismissals particularly concerned Conrad, who felt several batters were undone by their decision-making rather than simply by Australia's bowling quality.
'A lot of our dismissals sat in the mental corner'
Asked whether the poor shot selection had left him and batting coach Ashwell Prince frustrated, Conrad responded with a joke about their shaved heads before acknowledging the seriousness of the problem.
“There's a singlemindedness that goes with Test batting, especially against a world-class attack like Australia's,” he said.
The South African coach admitted that the team's shot selection had been frustrating but stopped short of placing the blame on individual players.
“Where do you apportion blame? Do you apportion blame? We need to be better after this. Yes, we were pulling the last strands [of hair] out with some of the decision-making and the shot-making,” Conrad said.
He categorised dismissals into three areas: technical, tactical and mental and suggested that the mental aspect had played a significant role in South Africa's batting struggles.
“Dismissals sit in one of three places; technical, tactical or mental. A lot of our dismissals sat in the mental corner. Is that an easier fix than technical and tactical? Probably not,” he added.
While Aiden Markram offered a lesson in patience with a determined second-innings knock of 75, Conrad believes the rest of the batting unit must learn to dig deeper when the pressure mounts. For the South African coach, the defeat was not merely about technical shortcomings but also about the mental discipline needed to succeed in Test cricket .
“Aiden showed us in the second innings that there’s nothing fancy about Test cricket,” Conrad told reporters after the match on Tuesday. “It’s that singlebloodymindedness- ‘I’ve got to bat for a day-and-a-half, irrespective of what it looks like’. Some of our batters can take a leaf out of his book.”
Markram's patience offers South Africa a blueprint
Markram stood out in South Africa's attempt to save the Test, spending just under six hours at the crease and facing 237 deliveries for his 75 runs. His innings was comfortably the longest stay by a South African batter during the fourth-innings effort.
Wiaan Mulder provided the next-best resistance, batting for more than two hours, while David Bedingham was the only other batter to spend more than an hour at the crease. Only Markram and Mulder faced more than 100 deliveries, highlighting the lack of sustained resistance from the rest of the batting order.
South Africa's problems had intensified on the third day when they lost Markram, Temba Bavuma and Bedingham within 9.3 overs, adding just 15 runs during that collapse. Their final six wickets then fell for 129 runs, leaving the hosts unable to mount a serious challenge. The manner of the dismissals particularly concerned Conrad, who felt several batters were undone by their decision-making rather than simply by Australia's bowling quality.
'A lot of our dismissals sat in the mental corner'
Asked whether the poor shot selection had left him and batting coach Ashwell Prince frustrated, Conrad responded with a joke about their shaved heads before acknowledging the seriousness of the problem.
“There's a singlemindedness that goes with Test batting, especially against a world-class attack like Australia's,” he said.
The South African coach admitted that the team's shot selection had been frustrating but stopped short of placing the blame on individual players.
“Where do you apportion blame? Do you apportion blame? We need to be better after this. Yes, we were pulling the last strands [of hair] out with some of the decision-making and the shot-making,” Conrad said.
He categorised dismissals into three areas: technical, tactical and mental and suggested that the mental aspect had played a significant role in South Africa's batting struggles.
“Dismissals sit in one of three places; technical, tactical or mental. A lot of our dismissals sat in the mental corner. Is that an easier fix than technical and tactical? Probably not,” he added.
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