SOUTH AFRICA HAVE UPPER HAND
England in 2016. The ground personnel though have assured there will be plenty of bounce and pace. While the jury is still out whether swing would inflict some casualty, this India is no longer a dummy against bounce.
South Africa are aware of this development. And probably that explains home boy Vernon Philander’s attempt at riling India, slightly unnatural considering the camaraderie these two teams share off the field courtesy the Indian Premier League. The gloves are off though this time as both teams are scramming to put their best XIS on the field.
South Africa coach Ottis Gibson may have expressed reservations about fielding Dale Steyn but you won’t want to buy into that after watching the man train. Shikhar Dhawan’s niggles sparked rumours he might not be fit but the opener had barged back by training long and hard. For India, the million-dollar question is whether Kohli goes for Rohit Sharma as the sixth batsman or Hardik Pandya as the fifth bowler. Logically, Pandya should play but Kohli may spring a surprise. Of the 12 Test series played between the two teams, India have won three and South Africa six. Three series have ended in a draw. India never won a Test series in South Africa.
India have won only two Tests in South Africa. The first one was a 123-run victory at Johannesburg in 2006-07 while the second was an 87-run victory at Durban in 2010-11. Pujara was in terrific form in 2017 as he finished as the second-highest run-getter with a tally of 1140 runs at an average of 67.05. Rabada was the most successful South African bowler last year with a tally of 57 wickets from 11 matches at an average of 20.28. While Rabada will try to unsettle Pujara with his raw pace, Pujara will look to blunt him. Elgar was the most successful South African batsman in 2017, scoring 1128 runs at an average of 53.71 in 12 Tests. India would want his wicket to make inroads into South Africa’s batting. Shami, who has established himself as India’s premier new-ball bowler, would look to get him early
SA Won Ind Won Drawn
Ashwin, who recently became the fastest to reach 300 wickets in Tests, would look to better his away record in South Africa. His duel with AB de Villiers, who is returning from injury, would be interesting. De Villiers can take the game away from rival teams in a short span of time but Ashwin can be trusted to use his guile to fox the ace batsman.