Well now all that summer footy and tennis is out of the way we can return to the proper summer game and the arrival of the Proteas for a four-Test series.
Now it’s difficult to think of SAF without the famous Spitting Image song*, but we have worked alongside a few of them and can confirm they’re not all boorish, prejudiced, barbecue-munching Afrikaners – (just most of them are).
Still there’s every indication that this year’s cricketing vintage will provide a suitably testing examination ahead of next year’s visit of the Aussies. The much vaunted pacemen are an interesting prospect with Makhaya Ntini particularly impressive and Morkel, Stein and Nel all pacy, aggressive by turns and looking to earn their spurs.
But it’s the batting line-up which most impresses with Graham Smith, AB De Villiers, Mark Boucher and Jacques Kallis proven performers (though World Class Kallis is now surely on a gentle downward slope). Ashwell Prince and especially Hashim Amla (sporter of one of the finest beards in cricket) also look good prospects.
There’s lots of 2-0, 3-0 SAF predictions from the pundits, but it’s going to be a lot closer than that and we think a 1-1 draw is most likely.
Chinks in the armour? Well the only weak link is the spinning department where Monty easily outguns Paul Harris and the frankly piss-poor pre-series mind games of coach Mickey Arthur which have been about as intimidating as a tickle-fight with a toddler.
Yet the real barrier exists in the minds of the SAFs themselves. In England they’ve always been chokers, lacking the self-belief to put the boot when the home side are down.
It’s a mindset they’ll have to change if those lesser pundits predictions are going to come anywhere near true.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment