Do not smile as much: Kevin Pietersen to South Africa debutant Nandre Burger

South Africa finished on top on Day 1 of the first Test at SuperSport Park, Centurion as they had India reeling at 208/8. Speedster Kagiso Rabada starred with the ball for the hosts as he scalped 14^th five-wicket haul of his career. Apart from him, debutant Nandre Burger also had a good day as he finished with figures of 2/50 in 15 overs.

The left-arm seamer dismissed Yashasvi Jaiswal (17 off 37) in the first session to claim his first Test wicket. He further dismissed Shubman Gill getting him strangled down the leg side in the very next over and got his second wicket. Following the end of the day’s play, Burger got special praise from former England cricketer Kevin Pietersen who lauded him for his pace.

Also Read: 'Ball dekhte rehna hath mein uske' - Virat Kohli's batting advice to Shreyas Iyer goes viral

However, the 43-year-old suggested him to not smile much at the batter but be aggressive as it brings them at ease while batting.

“I like Nandre Burger. I like his pace a lot. The only thing I’d like even more, is if he didn’t smile as much and got more aggressive! Smiling at batters gives them a small win every single time. Bowl fast, seriously fast and DO NOT smile after most deliveries!,” Pietersen wrote on his X account.

Pietersen recalls battles with Johnson

In another Tweet, Pietersen gave the example of former Australia fast bowler Mitchell Johnson and stated that he didn’t smile after most deliveries. Notably, Pietersen and Johnson had a great battle in Australia during the Ashes 2013-14. During the series, the Australian pacer gave nightmares to the English camp with his hostile fast bowling as he scalped 37 wickets from ten innings.

Also Read: There was abuse hurled at my wife, it was probably the worst it's ever been: Tabraiz Shamsi

Meanwhile, Burger has impressed cricket pundits worldwide with stellar performances in his short career. He boasts an average of 21.42 and an economy of 7.40 in his T20 career. The 28-year-old was also recently bought by Rajasthan Royals at his base price of INR 50 Lakh during the IPL 2024 auction.