By Zaahier Adams
South African cricket has never had such blue chip status as right now.
Not even the 1969-70 team, who whipped the Aussies 4-0 at home under the leadership of Ali Bacher, can compare to the current Proteas team.
The class of 2007-08 and 2008-09 scaled every peak that was before them, most notably the series wins in England and Australia.
The man at the forefront of every challenge, who leads them into battle with all the conviction of a certain Scottish warrior, is Graeme Smith.
We sat down with the Proteas skipper as he reflected on the greatest 18 months in South African cricket, the intricate details of that momentous feat at the SCG and will JP Duminy hold on to his place in the Test side?
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What do you think of Matthew Hayden's retirement, especially considering how badly he sledged you?
I grew to respect him the longer my career went on. He was such an imposing figure. He set the tone for many Australian innings. It's quite remarkable that every series in which he struggled, Australia struggled too. But as hard as he was on the field, he was always forthcoming off the field.
At the end of the Test series I actually had a few beers and a good chat with him. His last few matches were quite tough as he was on the front pages every day.
The Aussie media can get quite harsh with their own. But it was a surprise when he quit, he never hinted that he was going to quit. I think being left out of the one-day side pushed him to it a bit. Australia will miss him and his aggressive front-foot nature.
Many people would say you and Hayden are peas from the same
Yes, I do think so. Possibly because we are similar in stature, similar in style. I've always thought that it's important to know what you've been given in your career.
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