Indian bowlers' found little success barring the first half hour's play but skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni on Saturday defended their performance on a lifeless track while conceding that centurions Jacques Kallis and Hashim Amla put the hosts on the backfoot.
"I'm quite happy with the bowlers' performance and Zaheer bowled really well. We did a decent job of it as the wicket is rather slow. They were also a bit unlucky as the ball missed the edge on quite a few occasions," said Dhoni after four of his five bowlers drew a blank in South Africa's end of play score of 291 for 2 in 91 overs on the first day.
"There was a bit of turn especially for (leg-spinner) Amit Mishra but the ball did not rip off the pitch. It's not a square turner," he said, trying to explain the lack of success for his frontline spin duo despite bowling 47 overs in combination.
Dhoni lauded Kallis (not out 159) and Amla (not out 115) for rescuing their team from a precarious 6 for two, after Zaheer Khan's double strike in successive overs, with a record unconquered stand of 285 in 512 balls.
"They batted really well. You have to compliment them, We tried to put pressure, especially on Kallis, but he went after Harbhajan Singh in one over in which he gathered around 15 runs.
"But they batted patiently and we had to go for semi defensive fields as there was not much help for the spinners. We also had catching fielders but it never really worked. We tried our best," Dhoni said.
"It was just one over after that they never went after any bowler. That was only when we looked to attack. Once that happens when the wicket does not support your bowlers you have to go to semi-defensive field, catching fielders and fielders who can save boundaries," he added.
Dhoni, on the defensive over the inclusion of reserve stumper Wridhiman Saha as a specialist batsman in the playing eleven, said the choice was forced on the team as there were only two options after Rohit Sharma got injured.
"Now we can raise so many questions. We did not expect so many injuries to happen in such a short span of time. It just happened 15 minutes before the game. There have been so many injuries in such a short span of time.
"Had the injury (to Sharma) happened yesterday we could have asked for a replacement who could have played the game. It's (bad) luck. Cricket is a game of luck," Dhoni said. "We had only two options then, either to play (VVS) Laxman who is not hundred percent fit or include Saha. We were not going for the five bowler option," he added.
Dhoni also defended the pre-match warm-up sessions of the team that led to Sharma's freak injury when he twisted his ankle and had to go for an MRI scan that revealed a sprain. "Injuries are part and parcel of the game. He will now go to the (Bangalore-based) National Cricket Academy (for rehab)," Dhoni revealed. PTI
