New Delhi – With the series already in the bag, the mood heading into the fourth and final Test between India and South Africa in New Delhi is a bit muted. But, just because the ultimate outcome has already been decided, it doesn’t exactly follow that it will be a dud match.
If anything, Delhi may yet provide the closest thing to a contest, something that has been lacking between two fine teams. A week ago, there was still some speculation that this last match may not even be in Delhi, given the off-field shenanigans of the Delhi and District Cricket Association (DDCA).
But, one way or another, they have managed to get the stay of execution they needed, and Virat Kohli’s home-town will get to see him lift his first trophy at home as a Test captain.
In that sense, then, there is still much to play for. India, after dominating the spin war with the visitors, would probably be keen to put up some stiffer resistance with the bat, though Kohli himself said he couldn’t care less about batting averages, so long as his bowlers took 20 wickets.
For the tourists, it is a last chance to make some sort of impression on a series that they have never got going in. Hashim Amla's side would legitimately feel that a score-line of 3-0 would be an unfair reflection of what has occurred, and they will want to change the momentum around, mindful of a big series to come.
South Africa host England in a matter of weeks, and they will not want to limp into that fiery contest on the back of successive losses on the road.
What may play into the South African hands is the cooler weather in Delhi. For all intents and purposes, winter is creeping in, which means the baking temperatures needed for preparing another rank turner are no longer there. But, ominously, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) flew their chief curator, Daljit Singh, into Delhi on Saturday to ensure that they got the kind of wicket that they have got accustomed to.
Singh was the man behind the Mohali track in the first Test, and he is under precise instructions to shave off any of the grass that the local groundsmen had left on the wicket, with team director Ravi Shastri monitoring the situation. - The Star