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Cape Town - South Africa opener Dean Elgar feels that his new opening partner Aiden Markram could bring some much needed stability to the top of the order.
Elgar is familiar with the young man who was named captain
of the Titans franchise where the left-handed Proteas’ opener plies his trade
in Domestic cricket.
They recently shared a 184 run partnership in the Sunfoil Series at Supersport Park with Markram claiming the man of the match award with scores of 119 and 87.
Elgar feels that stability at the top will translate to strength in the batting unit as a whole which struggled in England.
Heino Kuhn was Elgar's partner for all four Tests and could only manage a highest score of 34.
In a press conference on Monday Elgar “I have been asked this question of having a new partner all the time at every press conference and the thing is maybe I was not outspoken about it in the past.
"Now‚ I think I have developed a voice with regards to the topic and I do think it’s unfair for a batting unit to be settled if the opening unit is unsettled.
"Your core with regards to the batting collective is your opening pair.
“Openers set up the rest for the guys to come through and play naturally.
"We need stability and consistency with regards to the combinations.
"I am extremely excited for Aiden because he has shown over the last season or two that he is a special player.
"He is still very young but he has shown that he is developing every time he holds his bat.”
Elgar sees great potential in his partnership with Markram and is eager to get to work on it against Bangladesh.
He added: “It is exciting times to have him there.
"We have just gone through a successful four-day game together for the Titans as an opening pair and hopefully we have longevity.
"We need to have a bit of stability and consistency and hopefully we can have a couple of years or seasons together.
"Obviously‚ it will improve our batting throughout the summer.
Elgar does the feel the need to discuss the step up to Test cricket with Markram at great length.
He went on: “He is trying to take everything in at the
moment because things happened so quickly.
"He went from being Titans captain in the Sunfoil
Series to Test opener in a week.
"From my side‚ it’s good just to have him settle his own
mind and take it in his own way.
"I am sure he has his own way and when we get closer to the Test match we will obviously sit down and have a normal chat.
"We are actually driving together to Potchefstroom on Wednesday‚ which is a good thing.
"Sometimes you don’t need to talk cricket‚ you just need to give him peace of mind because he is a special cricketer.
"Test cricket can sometimes cloud your thoughts but it is my job to calm him and make him feel welcomed.”
