Maharaj: ' I'll dish the whole day if I have to '

South African spinner claims to practice for long Test matches yet when he's in limited overs competitions.

Keshav Maharaj may respond if you asked him to perform a magic in the middle of the night.

" My interest is spin ball. I love it. I may wake up at two o'clock in the morning and if you ask me to pitcher, I'll bowl", Maharaj said from Trinidad, where South Africa and West Indies drew the second Test of a two-match line. " That keeps me motivated. I'll plate the entire day if I need to, as well as the need to do well for the team and get this team in a different way.

He is no exaggerating. Maharashtra hit 40 innings from the Queen's Park Media Centre End during West Indies ' opening wickets, which was interrupted by rain, and gave the team its second-longest men's check win since 2001. In the presence of a second professional bowler in the XI, Maharaj "knew there would be a lot of ball for me to do", and prepared for it in the month of white-ball cricket that preceded this line which included an SA20, IPL and the T20 World Cup.

" Whatever file I play, I always keep my tasks as if I'm preparing for Test cricket", Maharaj said. Regardless of whether it's T20 or fifty-over cricket, the only thing that changes is your length and occasionally your outlines a little bit. It's anything I pride myself in. I try to rely on consistency and being able to do it for a long period of time because I do n't have many variations like the other types of spinners around the world.

On a submissive pitch, Maharaj's self-discipline was crucial to South Africa taking a 124-run second innings guide but he also found some change on the next day. A glimpse of jump meant that when South Africa declared on the second day, with two meetings and 20 minutes to come, they were banking on Maharaj, to a big amount, to be able to bowl them to success.

But, batting appeared easier on the last day and West Indies were able to score at a good enough price to stay South Africa at sea. In the end, Maharaj thought the time of weather across the five weeks also played a component in denying him.

" The continuous rainfall bound the wicket and made it more comfortable to bat", he said. The wicket would have deteriorated the way we anticipated, according to the author, "if there had n't been so much time wasted by the rain."

South Africa chose an XI with just Maharaj as its front spin, leaving Dane Piedt on the bench, despite anticipating spinner-friendly situations. With Lungi Ngidi and Wiaan Mulder contributing little more than a fifth of the total overs bowled, South Africa also looked a bowler short but Maharaj believed they" we got it ( selection ) right in the end. Aiden ( Markram ) did an exceptional job as our fourth bowler, created opportunities and got that pivotal breakthrough in the morning of the West Indies first innings".

Markram's expulsion of Jason Holder sparked a West Indian decline of 6 for 60 in 17.1 wickets which set the circumstance up for South Africa to drive for a win. That they did n't has been described as "disappointing", by everyone from captain Temba Bavuma to Maharaj, particularly as South Africa have only a few lights scheduled.

In this World Test Championship ( WTC ) cycle, they play only two-Test series. Between now and January, they have played five Tests, with just seven more remaining. To give themselves a good chance of making the last, they will have to get all seven and will have to stay looking to push results in their behalf.

" It's naturally unsatisfactory not to get a result. We're constantly going to play cricket to ensure that we can offer ourselves the best chance, even if that operation dangles the carrot with the prospect of losing a game", he said, referring to South Africa setting West Indies a chaseable 298 in Trinidad. " Draws do n't count for much. We certainly know there's a World Test Championship at play, but we're focusing on each and every activity".

And in Maharaj's case- on ball when much as he can in each and every sport. " I always want the captain to take the ball apart from me in Test cricket so I'm always trying to bowl my best game and trying to be a cunning old personality".