Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Elgar defends South Africans against 'sledging' allegations

Elgar defends South Africans against 'sledging' allegations

South African Test captain Dean Elgar on Thursday defended his team against allegations of "unbearable sledging" during the first Test against Bangladesh in Durban.

He said the Bangladesh players needed to "harden up" if they wanted to play the game at a high level.


Speaking ahead of the second Test, which starts at St George's Park on Friday, Elgar said South Africa played the game hard but stopped short of swearing or using foul language towards their opponents.

Bangladesh cricket operations chief Jalal Yunus said on Tuesday that his board would make an official complaint to the International Cricket Council about what he described as biased umpiring and the "sledging" of the home team.

"I don't think they are justified whatsoever," said Elgar. "We play the game hard (but) if anything we were just giving back what we were getting when we were batting.

"This is Test cricket. It's a man's environment when it comes to playing at this level and I intend still to play the game hard.

"We don't swear or use foul language towards the Bangladesh batsmen because we still respect them. I think they need to harden up and maybe play the game at a level they're not used to," said Elgar.

The South African captain said the message to his players was: "We do everything with dignity and we don't throw our badge or our name away.

"I honestly didn't see any bad sledging out there, even from their side. I just think this is Test cricket and we need to dry our eyes sometimes."

The umpiring in Durban was in the spotlight with an unusually high number of 21 reviews – 11 by Bangladesh and 10 by South Africa – with four reviews upheld for each team.

South Africans Marais Erasmus and Adrian Holdstock were the men in charge under the ICC's coronavirus restrictions, leading the Bangladeshis to call for neutral umpires.

"The umpiring was tough," said Elgar. "I don't think the wicket helped. There was variable bounce which can challenge the umpires.

"I feel for them because they are good umpires. The human factor needs to be spoken of, they do make errors, as do the players, but I'm pretty sure they're going to learn a lot out of that.

"The umpires make decisions and we need to respect that. The technology is there for a reason. If you don't use the technology you're kind of holding yourself accountable for their decisions as well."

- Shower mishap -

Elgar appeared at the online press conference with bruising on his face and stitches above his right eye. He said it was the result of slipping in the shower in Durban on Monday night.

"I've got a few stitches in my forehead," he said. "I batted today, it was going to be a concern with where my helmet rests. I don't think I'm too far from where the doctor takes the stitches out. But I'm okay."

Bangladesh captain Mominul Haque referred only briefly to the Durban controversy, denying that he personally had complained about the South African team's behaviour.

"I never complained about sledging. In cricket sledging happens and you have to absorb it," he said.

Mominul said he was hopeful that opening batsman Tamim Iqbal would play in the second Test after recovering from illness.

He said the pitch looked dry and that Bangladesh would wait until Friday morning before deciding whether to play an extra spinner instead of a seam bowler.

More For You

Baiju Bhatt

At 40, Bhatt is the only person of Indian origin in this group, which includes figures such as Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg. (Photo: Getty Images)

Baiju Bhatt named among youngest billionaires in US by Forbes

INDIAN-AMERICAN entrepreneur Baiju Bhatt, co-founder of the commission-free trading platform Robinhood, has been named among the 10 youngest billionaires in the United States in the 2025 Forbes 400 list.

At 40, Bhatt is the only person of Indian origin in this group, which includes figures such as Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg. Forbes estimates his net worth at around USD 6–7 billion (£4.4–5.1 billion), primarily from his roughly 6 per cent ownership in Robinhood.

Keep ReadingShow less
Mandelson-Getty

Starmer dismissed Mandelson on Thursday after reading emails published by Bloomberg in which Mandelson defended Jeffrey Epstein following his 2008 conviction. (Photo: Getty Images)

Getty Images

Minister says Mandelson should never have been appointed

A CABINET minister has said Peter Mandelson should not have been made UK ambassador to the US, as criticism mounted over prime minister Keir Starmer’s judgment in appointing him.

Douglas Alexander, the Scotland secretary, told the BBC that Mandelson’s appointment was seen as “high-risk, high-reward” but that newly revealed emails changed the situation.

Keep ReadingShow less
​Dilemmas of dating in a digital world

We are living faster than ever before

AMG

​Dilemmas of dating in a digital world

Shiveena Haque

Finding romance today feels like trying to align stars in a night sky that refuses to stay still

When was the last time you stumbled into a conversation that made your heart skip? Or exchanged a sweet beginning to a love story - organically, without the buffer of screens, swipes, or curated profiles? In 2025, those moments feel rarer, swallowed up by the quickening pace of life.

Keep ReadingShow less
Comment: Mahmood’s rise exposes Britain’s diversity paradox

Shabana Mahmood, US homeland security secretary Kristi Noem, Canada’s public safety minister Gary Anandasangaree, Australia’s home affairs minister Tony Burke and New Zealand’s attorney general Judith Collins at the Five Eyes security alliance summit on Monday (8)

Comment: Mahmood’s rise exposes Britain’s diversity paradox

PRIME MINISTER Keir Starmer’s government is not working. That is the public verdict, one year in. So, he used his deputy Angela Rayner’s resignation to hit the reset button.

It signals a shift in his own theory of change. Starmer wanted his mission-led government to avoid frequent shuffles of his pack, so that ministers knew their briefs. Such a dramatic reshuffle shows that the prime minister has had enough of subject expertise for now, gambling instead that fresh eyes may bring bold new energy to intractable challenges on welfare and asylum.

Keep ReadingShow less
Nepal-unrest-Getty

Army personnel patrol outside Nepal's President House during a curfew imposed to restore law and order in Kathmandu on September 12, 2025. (Photo: Getty Images)

Getty Images

Nepal searches for new leader after 51 killed in protests

Highlights:

  • Nepal’s president and army in talks to find an interim leader after deadly protests
  • At least 51 killed, the deadliest unrest since the end of the Maoist civil war
  • Curfew imposed in Kathmandu, army patrols continue
  • Gen Z protest leaders demand parliament’s dissolution

NEPAL’s president and army moved on Friday to find a consensus interim leader after anti-corruption protests forced the government out and parliament was set on fire.

Keep ReadingShow less