Kagiso Rabada admits frustration with Proteas' batting woes but calls for patience

Proteas fast bowler Kagiso Rabada admits he is frustrated with the national team's batting woes in Test cricket but has called for patience with an inexperienced team.

Rabada was speaking after the Proteas lost the first Test against Australia in Brisbane inside two days after being bowled out for paltry totals of 152 and 99.

South Africa have been dismissed for a total of under 200 eight times this calendar year and it is largely because of the bowling unit that they find themselves still in with a chance of reaching next year's World Test Championship (WTC) final.

Rabada himself has taken 45 wickets in eight Tests in 2022 while bowling allrounder Marco Jansen has also been unearthed this year.

"The batting line-up that we have is quite inexperienced," Rabada said. "In fact, the team that we have is relatively inexperienced if you look at other cricketing nations.

"(Captain) Dean Elgar is our most experienced player followed by myself and Temba (Bavuma). I've played 50-odd Test matches and everyone else hasn't played much.

"It can get frustrating as well and when I say frustrating I don't mean to single out the batters, it's frustrating as a team and you almost have to understand that sometimes this is what happens in a rebuilding phase."

Rabada made his debut his international cricket in 2015 and had Proteas legends such as Hashim Amla, AB de Villiers and Faf du Plessis as teammates.

The 27-year-old Rabada is now one of the senior members of the Proteas outfit and sympathises with current members of the squad who are finding it tough at the highest level.

He said: "I've played in a team in a star-studded line-up, where you are literally playing with greats of the game. I don't think that happens quite frequently.

"Now, the situation that we're faced with, there's a whole lot of players who have come in, who have the ability but need to get used to the international circuit.

"So, there needs to be an element of patience and understanding but at the same time, you can't advocate for bad performances. However, we're quite positive."

The Proteas will need to bounce back quickly from the defeat in Brisbane as the next Test of the three-match starts on Boxing Day in Melbourne.