Proteas need to keep the pads on Big question is: Can batsmen replicate past heroics in England Tests?
ENGLAND may no longer be the most powerful cricketing nation in terms of finance or talent but it remains the destination for touring teams where players’ reputations are enhanced or diminished.
It’s a sort of “if you don’t make it in England, you really haven’t made it” way of thinking based on the place being the spot where the game originated.
The South African teams of 2008 and 2012 which won there and remain, along with Sri Lanka in 2014, the only teams to win Test series’ in England in the last nine years, had quite a few career-defining knocks which formed the bedrock of those successes.
A 10-wicket win at Headingley in the second Test in 2008 featured centuries from Ashwell Prince (149) and AB de Villiers (174), and in the following match Graeme Smith’s epic 154 not out – one of the greatest Test innings by a South African batsman – ensured a first series win for the Proteas in England in 43 years.
Four years later, Smith was at it again in his 100th Test, belting a century at The Oval.
But it was Hashim Amla’s 311 not out – the highest Test score by a South African batsman – that proved the highlight of a stunning total of 637/2 declared, which also featured a fine and virtually forgotten knock of 182 not out from Jacques Kallis, from which South Africa gained an innings victory.
In a tense series decider at Lord’s with the No1 Test ranking on the line, Amla again made a century as the Proteas won by 51 runs in the final session of the last day.
Looking forward to the four-test series starting at Lord’s on Thursday, the big question mark for the South Africans will be who is capable of reproducing the batting feats of 2008 and 2012 in 2017.
Prince, De Villiers, Amla and Smith were at the peak of their powers then and the South African Test team of that period was arguably the best one to emerge from this country.
There are a couple of reasons to be worried that this year the South Africans may struggle in England, with form and experience foremost among those.
Last season for all the grand success in Australia and New Zealand and a clean sweep on home soil of Sri Lanka the inconsistency of the batsmen – with the exception of Dean Elgar and Quinton de Kock – was clearly an area that rankled with the coaching staff.
Coach Russell Domingo mentioned on numerous occasions how too few of the batsmen were backing up one good score with another, often requiring De Kock at No 7 to dig them out of a hole.
Heading into this series South Africa will have a new opening batsman in Heino Kuhn, a No 3 in Amla whose form in the last year has been patchy (he’s averaging 33 in his last 11 Tests with just one century), and JP Duminy at No 4 who played some outstanding innings last summer but has failed to dominate in a crucial spot in the batting order.
Du Plessis and Temba Bavuma both played some crucial innings last season, but were commanding only fleetingly and that won’t be enough against an England attack who are very good at exploiting home conditions.
South Africa, with the exception of Lord’s, have struggled historically at the other three venues where the series will play out.
At Trent Bridge where the second Test will be played, South Africa have won just twice – the last of those triumphs was 52 years ago – and England’s record of six wins out of their last seven Tests there indicates it’s a venue their players enjoy.
Their record at Old Trafford is as intimidating, with eight wins out of their last 10 Tests including three by an innings and last year’s 330run victory over Pakistan.
South Africa, with an attack featuring Kagiso Rabada, Morné Morkel, Keshav Maharaj and hopefully a fit Vernon Philander, should be a match for England’s group, which will be spearheaded by Stuart Broad and James Anderson.
Although there are concerns about his recent knee problems, Ben Stokes provides extra depth to their attack.
It’s the batting on both sides which will provide the most intrigue.
Theunis de Bruyn will slot into the middle order in Du Plessis’ absence, although his form for South Africa A and for the Proteas against the England Lions in a warm-up match has been far from special. He is strong mentally though, an important asset in what will be an intimidating atmosphere at Lord’s.
Kuhn can fall back on experience and, importantly given his recent performances, form, as he prepares to open with stand-in skipper Elgar.
England are not devoid of worries themselves.
Gary Ballance has been restored to the Test side seemingly at the behest of new skipper Joe Root, who wants his Yorkshire colleague to bat at No 3 with Root at No 4.
Jonny Bairstow, Stokes and Moeen Ali are an aggressive middle order and the inclusion of all-rounders Liam Dawson, an off-spinner, and seamer Toby Rolandjones will lengthen their tail – something South Africa will need to be wary of.
Home ground advantage, and greater depth in both batting and bowling make England favourites. But they thought that five years ago.
It was South Africa’s batting in 2012 that proved the major difference and it will again be the batsmen who need to step up in this year’s series.
Last summer suggests the potential is there, but the shortcoming was consistency and that will need to be achieved in this series if, like they did in Australia, the Proteas are to produce a hat-trick of series wins in England.