Shukri Conrad brings Tony Greig's reference, claims South Africa wanted to make Indians grovel

Overview

• In a controversial statement after Day 4 of the Guwahati Test 2025, Shukri Conrad said they wanted the Indian players to really grovel
• The South African Coach opened up on the reason behind a delayed declaration in their second innings
• He wanted the WTC 2025 winners to make the best use of the new ball and wanted a hard ball at the start of Day 5

In a controversial statement after Day 4 of the Guwahati Test, Shukri Conrad said they wanted the Indian players to really grovel. The South African Coach opened up on the reason behind a delayed declaration in their second innings. He wanted the WTC 2025 winners to make the best use of the new ball and wanted a hard ball at the start of Day 5.

Conrad was present at the press conference after Day 4, where South Africa was firmly in the driver's seat, possessing the best chance of winning the match. However, it took them a while to declare their innings before India came out to bat.

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"We obviously looked at how best we were going to use the new ball, because in the morning, we still wanted a newish, hardish ball. What we felt is that when the shadows come across the wicket in the evening, there's something in it for the quick bowlers, so we didn't want to declare too early and not be able to use that," Conrad said.

"We wanted them to really grovel," - Shukri Conrad's controversial statement on the Indian Team

"And then, obviously, we wanted the Indians to spend as much time on their feet out in the field, we wanted them to really grovel, to steal a phrase, bat them completely out of the game, and then say to them, 'Come and survive on the last day and an hour this evening.' So, so far so good," he added in the press conference.

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Back in 1976, when the West Indies were on a tour of England, the then English skipper, Tony Greig, claimed they would want to make the visiting side grovel. West Indies went on to win both the Test and the ODI series.