South African captain Faf du Plessis has said that he has “learnt” his lessons from their last tour of India four years ago and hopes the team’s young members will put up a good show in the Test series. Earlier South Africa failed to manage the spin duo of Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja, losing the four-match series by 0-3.
“What Test cricket in general does to you is if there is a flaw in your game, it exposes it. Obviously last time we came here as a batting unit and personally myself found it difficult in tough conditions. The fact is that I needed to get better from a defensive and technical point of view to adapt to play in tough conditions,” Faf du Plessis said on the eve of the first Test.
“It was tough for everyone, but it was huge value for me. After that I started playing spin better. So I think all players have to go through tough times to make them better and understand where their potential weaknesses are. And then either you can disappear or come back stronger,” he added.
However, Amol Muzumdar has joined as South Africa’s batting coach for the Test series. His inputs will surely help South Africa.
“It is a different language, different mindset and it is really refreshing to have someone with local knowledge. He has been with us for a short time and we already have had some good conversations. The wickets spun more last time, this time it is not expected to turn as much. It was really dry back then and we struggled despite having an experienced line-up and now we have a young looking line up, so there is no baggage. These youngsters are motivated to do well in international cricket and this tour will be no different for them,” he said.
The series against India will be their first in the World Test Championship.
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“It is a good time to be involved with a young team. A lot of senior players are out and leadership group has changed completely. Time to grow new leaders, the next set of pacers, the next Hashim Amla. I am excited about that.”
“That is definitely one of the options. India has always been a place where you can score in the first innings but in the second innings, it can get challenging and you need ample bowling resources for the first innings. You need more than three or four bowlers. Generally taking 20 wickets wins you Test matches,” he said.
However, they are expected to do good this time.
“In the past teams visiting India used reverse swing and extra pace to their advantage. Last time here we felt the ball spun quite a bit and the spinner we have in Maharaj is as good as anyone in the world. He would just be much as a challenge for Indian batters. Yes we do have some pace but is about having accurate pace. In subcontinent just pace itself doesn’t count for much. You need to be accurate for a long time and make sure that ball does something through the air,” he concluded.
