Proteas in no spin, du Plessis taunts hosts India over turners
The focus of the first Test between India and South Africa is again going to be over the pitch, even before the first ball is bowled.
India were unhappy with the batting paradise at the Wankhede Stadium where they suffered a humiliating defeat in the final ODI to lose the series. And the first thing Test skipper Virat Kohli did on reaching the city was to rush to stadium and take a look at the wicket. However, South Africa are high on confidence after winning the T20 and ODI series. Faf du Plessis, the T20 skipper, said the visitors were expecting turners even in the ODI series and are prepared for pitches that offer turn from the first day itself. MERE EXCUSES “It’s a concern when you don’t expect it to happen. But we are expecting turning tracks and are planning for it. In India, it is a lot more aggressive now than it used to be. The pitches probably used to spin on day three, four and five but now they start doing that on day one,” he said. Taking a jibe at India’s open protests at not getting home advantage, du Plessis said the hosts are complaining because they are not winning and it’s a ploy to deflect focus away from their losses.
“Perhaps they will now be putting pressure on the groundsmen to give them wickets they want. On a slower wicket, India know they are in the game. I don’t know, the wicket here (Mohali) looks dry. We are expecting the worst and preparing for it,” he said. The visitors are yet to put a foot wrong in terms of preparations and execution. Test skipper Hashim Alma has struggled on this tour, but AB de Villiers and du Plessis have good knocks under their belt. After winning the first two T20s, South Africa clinched the ODI series by amassing 438 in the decider in Mumbai.
“For me, ODI is about runs and you don’t go to games expecting 180-190 scores. Mumbai was great for fans as there were lot of runs, and in the end a 400-plus score was an extreme amount of runs for India to chase.”
South Africa will be playing their first Test at Mohali. Du Plessis was confident the core batting group comprising himself, de Villiers and Amla will do well.
“As the leaders, we have set standards for ourselves. From the core group, if two of us have a good series then we can put up a strong challenge. We have good youngsters who have played domestic cricket. They are asking the right questions and preparing for the challenges of playing in India.”