In Test cricket, the host countries generally prefer to prepare pitches to suit their strengths. Indian pitches have, traditionally, favoured spin, and so, South African skipper Temba Bavuma said he would not be “shocked” to find turning pitches when his team visits the subcontinent in November for the two-Test series.
“In terms of the surfaces in India being spinner-friendly, we won’t be shocked if we get to India and we play on spinner-friendly wickets. Generally, teams are now always using their conditions to their favour, especially with the way the World Test Championship has been set up,” Temba Bavuma told THE WEEK at a media interaction ahead of the CEAT Cricket Rating Awards in Mumbai on October 7.
South Africa will begin their defence of the World Test Championship title in a two-match series in Pakistan on October 12, followed by the series against India, starting on November 14. In June, South Africa had defeated favourites Australia to win their first WTC – their first ICC trophy since the Wills International Cup in 1998, which would later become the Champions Trophy.
With the nature of the pitches always a hot topic, Bavuma said Indian wickets would be a challenge, but one they would strive to ace. “From my experience, there always seems to be a difference in the way Indian spinners bowl in their own conditions versus spinners outside of India,” he told THE WEEK. “So, there’s always the challenge of foreign spinners adjusting to the conditions here, either bowling quicker or flatter [in India].
“From a batting point of view, and with the help of the IPL and such leagues, it’s given guys the experience and they know how to be successful in these conditions. I know that’s T20 cricket and the wickets are generally good, but the guys are lot more familiar and they share information among themselves. It will be a different challenge (Test series) as it’s not something we are instinctively attuned to back home. But the knowledge is there. Whatever is put before us on the day, we will prepare accordingly and make sure we are ready for whatever challenge there is. The series is still a month away, but I think it will be an exciting one. There is new leadership for India; I am captaining Tests in India for the first time. There are a lot of sub-stories, and it will only make the game a lot more beautiful,” he said.
Unfortunately, for South Africa, Bavuma will not be part of the Pakistan series because of a calf injury, but is on the recovery path. “Physically, I am going through my rehab,” he told THE WEEK. “The calf is pain-free at the moment. Next week I start with running, so things are going well.”