Marco Janssen has undoubtedly had the best two phases of his career at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata. While he hit an all-time low at the same venue in 2023, he bounced back from the ashes in Kolkata in 2025, leading his team to one of the most memorable wins in their history.
South Africa will play its match at Eden Gardens, Kolkata. They will face New Zealand in the match. Considering New Zealand’s power-packed opening pair, the powerplay will be a crucial phase in their batting innings, and South Africa will be expecting something from their lanky fast bowlers, Marco Johnson and Lungi Ngidi.
This ground has always held special significance in world cricket and the Kolkata crowd provides some thrill to any team that comes here. For Marco Jensen, the Gardens of Eden was once a field of nightmare; However, his luck also changed at this very place.
From flopstar to superstar: Marco Jansen’s love-hate affair with Eden Gardens
When young Marco Jensen bowled for the first time at Eden Gardens, things really went wrong. Jensen went from being the top powerplay bowler of CWC 2023 to losing against the home team. Under the leadership of captain Rohit Sharma, the Indian team targeted them and gave away 94 runs in their 9.4 overs. He bowled a total of 7 wides and one no-ball in that game.
His nightmare at Eden Gardens continued when South Africa faced Australia in the semi-finals and he was removed from the bowling earlier than expected. He gave away 35 runs in his 4.2 overs. Without a single wicket at the venue, they had almost given up their chances of doing well on Indian wickets.
Jensen was never able to regain confidence in himself until South Africa arrived at the same Eden Gardens for the first Test against India in 2025. The qualities he learned in Kolkata helped him lead South Africa to one of the most prestigious victories in their history, as he took 6/48 in the first innings of the next game in Guwahati.
The 25-year-old Johnson never remembers South Africa winning a Test series in India until he himself was part of one of the memorable and iconic wins for the Proteas.
Marco Jansen makes a big revelation on using Jasprit Bumrah’s hack to dismiss Indian batsmen
As Marco Jensen talks about what made him a different player after the Kolkata Test, he reveals that he learned massively from watching Jasprit Bumrah bowl. He took a closer look at the great Indian fast bowler after taking five wickets.
“In the first test match [in Kolkata]i saw it [Jasprit Bumrah]In the replays of his wickets, and I saw his hands and the ball, there was a lot of spin on the ball. “I thought, I’ve just got to try and emulate what he’s doing,” Marco said in New Delhi after South Africa reached the semi-finals.
He then went on to say that after trying and implementing it, he found that the ball was starting to move away from the wicket, and the same fast, quick pace helped him take two quick wickets later in the game.
However, despite giving credit to Bumrah, he claimed that his 93-run innings in Guwahati was the real game-changer for him. After that innings with the bat, his confidence increased further and he gained confidence to perform in India.
What does Jensen bring for South Africa this time at Eden Gardens?
Marco Johnson has brought a new dish for South Africa in this T20 World Cup. He is South Africa’s second highest wicket taker and fifth overall. A particular addition to his skill set coming into this World Cup is his knuckleball, which he coined ‘like a palm ball’ because it is held in the hand for a longer period of time.
When this ball lands on a perfect note, it is a lethally deceptive delivery, as it takes about 25 kmph off the ball compared to his stock delivery.
“I always felt I needed to add a different ball to my armoury. I always had an offcutter and I tried to bowl a legcutter, but it just didn’t work with my action,” he says. Marco Jensen said, “So I tried the knuckleball and it came out really good, but I thought hitters could pick it up.”
He added, “Then I tried palm ball, putting the ball deeper into my hand. It came out well, but it wasn’t as consistent, and now it’s a mix of the two. I’m just working on trying to hide it as much as I can.”
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