South Africa begin a five match One-Day series against world champions Australia at SuperSport Park today. Stuart Hess assesses five key areas which could decide the outcome of the series.
Top order batsmen
Both sets of openers are very aggressive. The Australians, Dave Warner and Aaron Finch (if the latter is fit), are a bruising, hard-hitting duo, while Hashim Amla and Quinton de Kock rely more on timing and in Amla’s case touch. Importantly, as Steve Smith mentioned yesterday, he wants his openers to play positively. In the case of the respective No 3s also the captains their jobs are to bat the majority of the innings.
The middle order
There is no AB de Villiers, and no AB de Villiers leaves an enormous hole in the SA middle order. Du Plessis spoke yesterday about how confident JP Duminy’s been looking recently, and it is to be hoped that confidence can be transformed into runs. Dave Miller continues to irritate, while Farhaan Behardien’s 20-ball half-century against Ireland will do his confidence the world of good. It’s vital he replicates that form against sterner opposition.
The new all-rounder
Duminy, Behardien and Wayne Parnell seem a shoe-in for the starting side, meaning one of Dwaine Pretorius and Andile Phehlukwayo will sit out the first game today. As Du Plessis explained yesterday, the Proteas have been desperate for more and better all-rounder options and he’s hopeful Pretorius and Phehlukwayo will put up their hands. Lack of an all-rounder has unbalanced the team and was a key reason for SA's failure at last year’s World Cup.
The new ball bowling
Having highlighted the respective top orders, the ability to take wickets early is vital. South Africa with Dale Steyn and Kagiso Rabada appear to have the advantage over the Australians. Steyn in particular has, as both captains pointed out yesterday, ‘a point to prove,’ after he was left out of the squad for the triangular series. Given the aggressive natures of both Finch and Warner, there’ll be chances for Steyn and Rabada, but the Proteas will have to take them, or there’ll be trouble.
The impact of spin
Smith was right yesterday by saying he didn’t expect spin bowlers to be as successful. That doesn’t mean the roles of Adam Zampa and Imran Tahir won’t be important. Both provide variety and are important wicket-taking options for their respective sides. They may have to contain more in this series, especially in the two matches on the Highveld.
The Star