Ability and talent is definitely there
Having comprehensively beaten England 3-0, then the world Test match top dogs, in the ‘home’ series staged in the UAE in 2011-12, the greenshirts no doubt possess the ability, talent and experience to overthrow the present number one team, which is none other than their entertaining current host, South Africa.
Their self-belief and morale would have received a timely boost with a 2-1 ODI series win over India in enemy territory, with some good performances all round, and above all a welcome show of fighting spirit that was previously absent. It was this latter deficiency that had resulted in the sometimes farcical, sometimes almost comical performances and the ‘unpredictability’ label, despite the immense promise and potential. But it would take some effort, both of the willow and of the will, to upset the champions at the present time.
Since the 2010/11 season, the Proteas too have gone from strength to strength and are at the peak of their confidence and form. In August 2012, they had become the first team ever to be ranked world number one in all three formats of the game. Some achievement, as they had come in from the ‘apartheid cold’ only in 1991.
They have not lost a Test series after their 2-0 triumph in the West Indies in 2010, have beaten Australia 1-0 on the 2012/13 away series Down Under, not an easy task by any means, and lately blown away the touring Kiwis 2-0. Their so-called ‘chocker’ tag apparently applies only in the overs-limited versions of the game, for in the Test matches Down Under, both their bowlers and batsmen remained focused throughout the series in a laudable display of concentration and purpose.
In the second match at the Adelaide Oval in November 2012, Francois du Plessis single-handedly withstood the Aussie bowling attack for 466 minutes and faced 376 balls in scoring an unbeaten 110, to avert certain defeat and keep the series win in the third Test alive.
With captain Graeme Smith returning to form, and the likes of legend Jacques Kallis, Hashim Amla, AB de Villiers, du Plessis, Dale Steyn, Vernon Philander and Mornie Morkel making up the Test squad, there is hardly a chink to be found in the Proteas armour, while their fielding too is splendid. If the opponent does win, it will only be through superlative performances in all areas, and the winner too would not be without physical bruises and mental scars after the event.
Formidable though this bowling and batting line-up might be, yet another challenging obstacle remains to be overcome by the visitors, and especially those from the subcontinent. In place of the comforting flat-tracks and normally sunny conditions back home, they are suddenly confronted not only by pitches with a nasty bounce and swing, but also vastly different weather conditions in precipitation, humidity, temperature and sudden climate changes.
The famous, almost iconic, Wanderers ground at Johannesburg, the venue of the first Pakistan-Proteas Test, is especially unnerving to visitors because of its exceptional pace and bounce. In this case, at least, South Africa seem to be following the Australian (and later the West Indian) pattern of overawing visiting teams with a pace battery on a helpful pitch in the first encounter, as the Kangaroos usually did in the Dennis Lillee-Geoff Thompson era. Terrified touring sides, after a four-day practice match, were thrust in the inferno of the then lightning fast Perth wicket only to emerge with broken reputations, not to mention limbs.
With only three Tests to be played, coming back from a one-down defeat in humiliating circumstances in the first match, is a tough proposition and an uphill task for the losers. So, as always, the first Test beginning on February 1 is crucial, if Pakistan is to break its jinx of never winning a Test series in South Africa. If there is one place, in which not only ‘doing more’ but giving a hundred percent matters, it is at the Wanderers.
The toss and the weather might play a major role in Johannesburg, as partly cloudy weather (with possible rain) and high humidity (with light winds) have been forecast for the duration of the match. These conditions are ideal for pace and seam. The team batting first is likely to face difficulties or even total disaster, if it panics.
The performance in the four day practice match against the South African Invitation XI has revealed a perturbing weakness in the Pakistani middle order, which collapsed in the all too familiar manner in both innings, although the in-form openers and the bowlers appear to have adjusted to the changed (and rain-interrupted) conditions in East London.
But the off-field dramas, the leading cause of internal discord, that have always plagued and followed the Pakistan cricketing tourists, have already begun. Some differences regarding selection which surfaced when the team was announced have now come out in the open. It was obvious then that a much tried but unfulfilling batsman, had been inexplicably included, while the four-man pace department, which including an unknown rookie and an exciting giant of suspect fitness, was one bowler short.
This has now necessitated the urgent dispatch to Johannesburg of reinforcements in the form of two fast bowlers, the 34-year-old Tanvir Ahmed and the left-arm swing bowler Rahat Ali, although to most people the obvious choice was, or should have been, Wahab Riaz. One can only hope that all this chopping and changing at the eleventh hour works out for Pakistan in the end.
Amid all the commercialism, astronomical payouts, media hype and theatrics of modern-day cricket, the players tend to forget that they are privileged enough to be representing their country.
Above everything else, the hugely talented Pakistani cricketers must keep this in mind and realize that millions of their countrymen are hoping for them to come good on this tour. If they perform as a unit, ‘one for all, and all for one’, with motivation and unshakeable determination, they can bring some desperately needed cheer to a disconsolate people.
