South Africa batting coach Ashwell Prince on Friday brushed aside any potential controversy surrounding Indian pacer Jasprit Bumrah’s ‘bauna’ remark aimed at Proteas captain Temba Bavuma, which was caught on stump-mic during Day 1 of the first Test at Eden Gardens in Kolkata.
The moment occurred on the final ball of the 13th over, with South Africa at 62/2, when India appealed for leg-before wicket after Bumrah struck Bavuma on the thigh pad. As wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant and Bumrah discussed a possible review, the stump mic picked up the Indian pacer saying, “bauna bhi hai”, a phrase several viewers interpreted as a jibe at Bavuma’s height.
The Hindi word bauna is commonly used to describe someone with dwarfism, and its casual use for a shorter individual can be considered offensive.
Prince, a former South African batter, however, made it clear that South Africa would not pursue the issue.
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“No, there will be no discussion. It's the first time it's come to my attention. I don't think there'll be any issues with what's happened out in the middle,” he said after the day’s play.
{{/usCountry}}“No, there will be no discussion. It's the first time it's come to my attention. I don't think there'll be any issues with what's happened out in the middle,” he said after the day’s play.
{{/usCountry}}Bavuma, returning to lead the Test side after recovering from a calf strain, endured a brief stay at the crease. He was dismissed for 3 off 11 balls by Kuldeep Yadav, who trapped him at leg slip. The injury had earlier kept the South African skipper out of the opening stretch of their World Test Championship title defence against Pakistan.
The lbw appeal that sparked the exchange was ultimately deemed incorrect to review, with Pant insisting the ball was going over. Replays later confirmed that the delivery would have missed the stumps.
Interestingly, Bumrah, the star of the show, also appeared for the press conference but he wasn't anything related to that stump-mic incident.
Earlier in the day, Bumrah produced a masterclass with the ball, picking up 5/27 – his 16th five-wicket haul - to bowl South Africa out for 159. In reply, India reached 37/1 at stumps with KL Rahul (13*) and Washington Sundar (6*) at the crease.