South Africa middle-order batter Temba Bavuma has admitted that the "inexperience" in the Test line-up has been one of the reasons for their struggles in the format in recent times, which has now resulted in them losing a three-match series to Australia.
At the Boxing Day Test in the MCG, South Africa were thrashed by an innings and 182 runs by a rampant Australian team, making it the first time since 2005/06 that the Proteas didn't win a Test series in the country.
It is also South Africa's second successive Test series loss after 1-2 defeat to England in August-September. South Africa's domestic cricket structure has come under the scanner too, as the restructured system means players will play seven first-class matches instead of ten as per the previous layout.
But Bavuma chose not to comment much on it. "I've heard those arguments of people looking at our domestic system back home and asking if it really is equipping guys for this level.
I'm sure the guys in the room -- the inexperienced guys -- will understand that it's a big jump. There's a big difference between franchise cricket and international cricket. I can't really sit here and have a go at our system.
I'm part of that system as well, so that's not something I am going to give a brutal answer towards. But the inexperience within the group, that's really showing up," Bavuma was quoted as saying by ESPNCricinfo.
A major cause of South Africa's failures in Tests have been the lack of big scores from their batting line-up, with Bavuma yet to record a three-figure score in the format after his maiden century in January 2016.
The batter is determined to change the tide during the Sydney Test starting from January 4. "The 60s or 70s or I guess they're good for that moment, but in the bigger scheme of things they don't change the outcome of the game.
I've obviously been guilty of that in my Test career, and that's something that I'd really like to change not just for myself but also for the team," he said. "That's something that the team needs -- two guys to go out there and score big hundreds, and really give the bowlers something to rally behind," he added.
Bavuma also conceded that South Africa's batters haven't adapted well to the conditions they have faced in Tests this year. "The talk around the conditions is a matter of stating the obvious. The team that wins is the team that adapts better in those conditions," Bavuma said.
"And we simply haven't done that. It's a matter of us just not simply adapting. We need to be brutally honest as a batting group - we just haven't been good enough," he concluded.