Upping their game

DURING the last four days of cricket at Kingsmead, the Australians have shown they mean business and the South Africans will have realised they need to up their game dramatically if they hope to match their opponents. Notwithstanding Aiden Markram and Quinton de Kock’s excellent knocks on Sunday, the South African top and middle order have not scored enough runs as a unit over the course of the summer. And gathering themselves is going to be a massive challenge against the fast-bowling trio of Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Pat Cummins, who are already revelling in the South African conditions.

South Africa can take heart from Markram’s fighting knock, De Kock’s return to form and Keshav Maharaj’s accurate and productive bowling.

However, Hashim Amla’s poor run of form will be of grave concern.

For many years the kingpin of the Proteas batting line-up, Amla was often the rock that big totals were made around. In the last eight Test innings, comprised of the three Tests against India and this first Test against Australia, South Africa have only breached the 300mark once.

The Proteas will not beat the Australians in any of the next Test matches if they don’t start scoring in excess of 350 more regularly.

Much will be said about the umpires’ handling of the bad light.

Many would ask how different the light was at the start of Starc’s over to Vernon Philander to when he skittled Maharaj and Kagiso Rabada three and four balls later.

It’s a tough call, but perhaps umpires shouldn’t have to be put in that position.

Durban is renowned for bad light, so why not start Durban Tests at 9am? International golfers tee off as early as 7am, so why can’t cricketers get going at 9am?

Next up is St George’s Park in Port Elizabeth on Friday.

South Africa have won four and drawn one of the last five Tests at the venue. Graeme Smith’s Proteas beat Michael Clarke’s Australian team by 231 runs at St George’s in 2014. AB de Villiers and JP Duminy both scored centuries in South Africa’s first innings and

Amla scored 127 not out in the second innings, as the Proteas cantered to the win.

With seven players in that Test still playing for the Proteas, let’s hope their memory serves them well come Friday.