Wiaan Mulder opens up on South Africa’s surprise declaration and the Brian Lara angle behind it – sportingnews.com

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Saurav Goyal
(Getty)
Wiaan Mulder was unbeaten on 367. Just 34 runs away from going past Brian Lara’s legendary 400* which is the highest individual score in Test cricket.
But instead of chasing history, the South African stand-in skipper surprised everyone by declaring at lunch on Day 2 of the second Test against Zimbabwe in Bulawayo.
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The team score was 626/5 when the players walked off and cricket fans were left stunned. Some praised the selfless call others were left heartbroken. Mulder batted like a dream and broken a host of records along the way.
Speaking after the day’s play, Mulder said that the team had already posted more than enough runs and he wanted to give his bowlers time to get the opposition out, “First things first, I thought we got enough and we need to bowl,”
The 27-year-old then said he was very aware of the record, but he didn’t feel it was his to take. His head coach, Shukri Conrad, also supported the move.
“And secondly, Brian Lara is a legend, let’s be real. He got 401 or whatever it was against England. And for someone of that stature to keep that record is pretty special. I think if I get the chance again, I’d probably do the same thing,” Mulder said.
“I know speaking to the head coach Shukri Conrad, he kind of said to me as well, like, listen, let the legends keep the really big scores,” he added.
MORE: England's Bazball Test defeats at home under McCullum
Mulder’s 367* came off just 334 balls and included 49 fours and 4 sixes. He struck at an aggressive rate of 109.88. Though he didn’t chase the world record, his knock was already one for the history books.
By the time he declared, Mulder had broken several long-standing South African records, including the highest individual score by a South African in Tests. His knock now ranks among the top five highest individual scores in the history of Test cricket.
While many believed he could’ve easily gone past Lara’s 400, the decision to stop showed a different side of the game.
MORE: Why did Wiaan Mulder declare before breaking Brian Lara's record? Dale Steyn feels '400 was deserved'
Saurav Goyal is a content producer for The Sporting News’ India edition. 

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