India chase history while Proteas look for a smile
“Throwing the first punch.’ The coaches may have changed, players too, but South Africa’s mantra is now as it was 10 years ago, when the Proteas were at their peak as a Test side - “throw the first punch.”
Duanne Olivier has been out of the Test arena for three years, but yesterday, in looking ahead to the series, there came that phrase. “For us, it’s about throwing the first punch,” said the 29-year-old fast bowler.
And so it will be for 26 December 2021 and the first Test against India at Centurion.
SA go into the first Test, very much as underdogs.
They are less experienced, lack game time and despite captain Dean Elgar’s robust claim this week of how the players are managing, do have off-field distractions that have impacted on the squad. Even if times were good, facing this Indian team would be an extremely tough prospect.
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Rohit Sharma’s absence is a blow, but India have terrific depth, and his likely replacement, KL Rahul had a good tour to England that included a century at Lord’s. Captain Virat Kohli’s form in 2021 hasn’t matched the dizzy standards he has set for himself, but in a series where there is so much at stake for him personally, it should come as no surprise if he produced a defining innings.
India too aren’t without distraction from matters off the field, coming into the series.
There has been much controversy over Kohli’s axing as captain across the limited-overs formats, but it would fit with his tenacious nature to want to use all that as fuel for this series. No Indian captain has won a series in SA, and it would be the most striking achievement of his career, were the 33-year-old to summit a mountain that Sachin Tendulkar, Mahendra Singh Dhoni and the team’s current coach Rahul Dravid, failed to do.
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Kohli has the armoury at his disposal with the ball, and a resolute batting unit that has absorbed and even thrived against the best that Australia and England have thrown at them this year.
SA will have to fight. It may be that they will have to play ugly, and drag the Indians into the trenches if they are to cause an upset. Of course India have been there, the battles in Brisbane and Lord’s were hard-fought affairs, where India’s resilience came to the fore.
Can SA match or sustain that, should sessions or days turn that way? We don’t really know, because while they have faced pressure moments against Sri Lanka and the West Indies, and got out ahead in those sides, against Pakistan, when the heat was turned up in Karachi and then especially in Rawalpindi, they wilted.
SA have match winners; Aiden Markram has seemingly turned the corner as an international batter, Quinton de Kock, was the team’s best player before all that drama at the T20 World Cup and Centurion is one of his favourite venues, while Kagiso Rabada, would love to produce a career-defining series.
They all need to be close to perfect however, and must have teammates providing substantial support.
SA cricket is in desperate need of a lift - for a smile to be put back on its face. Landing that first punch would help.
@shockerhess