The Proteas swop the dry highveld for Durban’s coastal humidity, and their pink gear for the traditional green and yellow, as they bid to wrap up the ODI series against Pakistan at Kingsmead on Thursday.
The match could be the scene for the return of paceman Morné Morkel, who last played for the Proteas in the second Test at Newlands a month ago. He was forced off the field with a hamstring injury during Pakistan’s second innings.
On Monday, Morkel had a “middle practice” at Kingsmead, bowling four overs with no evident discomfort in the company of assistant coach Russell Domingo. Domingo said Morkel would have a fitness test today to see if he was fit enough to make his return.
“Obviously it’ll be great to see him back in action, but I don’t want to make any predictions. Let’s wait and see what happens,” he said.
Durban has not been a happy hunting ground – particularly in Test matches – for the Proteas in recent years as they have struggled to come to terms with a recent trend towards slower, more spinner-friendly pitches. This season, however, a concerted effort has been made to produce bouncier, faster tracks.
Kingsmead’s stadium manager, Brett Proctor, said the pitch had hardened up appreciably by yesterday afternoon, but was starting to look a little cracked and dry towards the end of a very hot day.
Batting hero Hashim Amla has confessed to being “curious” about what conditions Durban would offer. “It’s been a long time since I played in either a domestic or an international match at Kingsmead,” he said after the Proteas completed a 34-run victory at the Wanderers on Sunday to take a 2-1 lead in the five-match series.
Amla acknowledged that Kingsmead rarely produced the kind of high-scoring conditions familiar to the Wanderers, and pointed out that because it was a day match (on Human Rights Day), the chances of the ball swinging were lessened.
This being Durban, where the weather forecast forms an essential part of every match build-up, it’s encouraging to see that the current prediction is for hot, sunny conditions.
Centurions Amla and AB de Villiers shared the Man of the Match award for their world record third-wicket partnership of 238 in 194 balls, the key ingredient in South Africa’s victory.
Asked why he and De Villiers had batted so successfully together in recent years, Amla said part of the reason was that they both frequently rotated the strike.
“I do my thing, then get off strike by knocking the ball into the gaps, and AB does the same thing. That way you play as much risk-free cricket as possible and it helps to build the partnership. I like batting with AB. When he comes in there’s a lot of energy and you know the game is going to go forward,” the World No 1 ODI batsman said.
Amla added there were style differences between the two players that helped complement their effectiveness as a unit. “AB gets to hit sixes over cover off the back foot,” he laughed. “We also keep each other motivated while we’re batting.”
He said that batting upfront with Graeme Smith and Colin Ingram on Sunday had posed early problems.
“The Pakistanis bowled really good lengths. The pitch was a bit tacky and the ball didn’t really come onto the bat. We found it difficult, but we knew that the first 10 overs would be tough. We kept reassuring ourselves, saying we just needed to hang in there.”
Meanwhile, the Lions’ T20 pace bowler, Sohail Tanvir, has been called up to the Pakistan squad as cover for Mohammad Irfan and Umar Gul. Irfan was unable to complete his quota of overs on Sunday because of an upset stomach, while Gul is nursing a knee injury.
