David Bedingham was around 21 and promising, having already played first-class cricket. But a horrific car accident almost ended the South African's budding journey as he was out of action for a year. However, Bedingham made a strong-willed comeback to become a Western Province stronghold and also plied his trade for County England's Durham, making more than 6,000 runs in 89 matches before making an impressive Test debut against India last week in Centurion. Now Bedingham finds himself in a unique space, playing his first Test at Newlands, his home ground.
“Whether I score points or not, it doesn't matter much to them (his family), nor to my friends. But just walking around there, it will be special,” Bedingham said.
He believes that the moment cannot be quantified by performance.
“It's quite surreal to play the game here, as I often came to watch in previous years. My friends all get me excited, not about whether I'm playing or not, but about the tickets,” Bedingham laughed.
The 29-year-old said it is a dream to score a hundred in front of friends and family as he owes them a lot.
“I think I've been through a lot. Sounds cliche, but from where I was in 2016 to where I am now, the opportunity to play a Test match at Newlands might be something very special.
That my parents are here, who have been through a lot. I didn't finish my studies, so I definitely owe them a lot,” Bedingham said.
While high school seniors Jacques Kallis and Herschelle Gibbs were his childhood heroes, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma fascinated him during his teenage years.
“My two favorites among Indian players are Sharma and Kohli. I think when I was between 13 and 18 years old I tried to mold my technique like theirs (Kallis and Gibbs) and when I had a bad match I changed my technique to copy Kohli's or probably Sharma's,” said Bedingham.
In fact, he was so nervous during his Centurion debut that he didn't let the feeling of facing Jasprit Bumrah sink in.
“My nerves were really high and I wasn't really thinking about his bowling. I was so nervous about hitting, great test. He swings the ball both ways with great speed,” he said.
Bedingham is also grateful that he had the opportunity to interact with England Test skipper Ben Stokes during his time at Durham.
“I think we talked a lot. I don't think he talked much about cricket. He talked about dealing with pressure. Talking to a world-class player like him helped him handle the pressure better in the first test,” Bedingham said of his interactions with Stokes.
Playing nearly 90 first-class games also had its positives.
“Everything happens for a reason. Fine if it (Test debut) would have happened five years ago, but I've played so much first-class cricket that I've learned the ups and downs.
It prepares you better for Test cricket.
I think all my experiences in first-class cricket have helped me control my emotions,” he explains.
In less than a month, Bedingham would fly to New Zealand as one of the “senior most” members of the Proteas squad, having played two Tests, as most of the big boys would be busy playing the SA20.
Bedingham can only chuckle as in his mind he didn't think he would make his debut against India and would only be in reserve for the tour of New Zealand.
So what if an SA20 franchise offers him a contract? “I had already removed my name from the design.” Will the T20 lure him? “I've always enjoyed watching Test cricket so I see it as a bonus. If those things come up, perfect, then my priority is Test cricket and first-class cricket. The biggest dream is to score a century at Newlands,” he signed off.
(This story has not been edited by DailyExpertNews staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
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