Johannesburg - Proteas coach Gary Kirsten believes the Test series between Australia and South Africa will come down to “key moments”, as the teams put in their final preparations ahead of the opener starting in Brisbane on Friday.
“I think the week we had in Sydney has been crucial to our preparation,” Kirsten said about the fixture against Australia A.
“It pulls the team together and it allows us to work specifically on what we need to do. You don't always get the ideal conditions that you would like, but you still have to take positives out of it.”
Kirsten refused to be lured into thinking that Australia posed a weakened challenge, after the loss of Shane Watson to a calf injury and poor form from their top players in matches leading into the series.
“Any guy can score runs in a Test match. We have to make sure that we do our business right,” Kirsten said.
“We have looked at areas that we can exploit within the Australian team as they would do with us.
“We feel that if we can put pressure on them in certain areas then we can make some plays in those big moments, that is ultimately what the Test series is going to boil down to.”
Tickets for the match had been selling fast, with locals anticipating the biggest non-Ashes crowd at the Gabba since 1995.
Sapa