Former South Africa fast bowler Fanie De Villiers says India have shot themselves in the foot by allowing foreign players to get acclimatised to its conditions through the Indian Premier League (IPL) and were no longer a big threat at home.
South Africa clinched the three-match T20 series 2-0 and won the ODI round 3-2 after match-winning performances by several of its stars who feature in the IPL.
And De Villiers feels India have been the “architect of their own downfall.”
“Our players are used to Indian conditions and India have been their own architect of this result by having overseas players getting used to the Indian conditions [through IPL],” De Villiers told The Times of India.
The 51-year-old pacer, who represented South Africa in 18 Tests and 83 ODIs, is of the view that subcontinent conditions were no longer as threatening as they used to be in the past.
“In the past, we haven’t lost against India, we have lost against the conditions. India aren’t good overseas, they are only good in their own conditions. They are basically the architect of their own downfall because you have created the scenario [IPL] where our players can play in your conditions.”
Before the on-going tour, South Africa had never won an ODI series in India. And De Villiers feels, the Test series is going to be tougher for India than before.
“Even Test cricket-wise, South Africa are going to be more competitive than in the past. For the last 15 years, we have played in so many series but couldn’t beat India because we struggled against the conditions. There’s this big difference between losing against India and losing against conditions. This will be an even tougher series for India,” he reckoned.
India and South Africa will take on each other in four Tests starting November 5.
