India and South Africa prepare to battle for top Test spot
Will the Indian team be able to justify top spot in the International Cricket Council (ICC) Test rankings? The South African series will be a big task for India. The Indian batsmen have a poor record in the bouncy South African conditions. Both the teams
will be fighting for the number one spot, and India will try to retain the ranking, whereas South Africa will look to dominate them and snatch top spot from them.
The Indian team hasn’t faced many tough challenges in the recent past, and have performed exceptionally well on the batting friendly tracks at home. They do have the batting power to cope with any conditions though.
India has one of the best opening pairs in cricket. http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Virender-Sehwag-c95429 have given some solid opening partnerships to their team, and hurt the opposition. Not only do they see off the new ball, but they also have the ability to score runs
quickly. Sehwag in particular has dominated the best in the business with his explosive batting throughout his career.
Following the openers in http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Rahul-c83321 Dravid, who bats at number three and is tailor made for the difficult conditions. He has the best defence in the Indian line-up and can frustrate bowlers by playing neatly. He has been out of form for a while, but came back
strongly against http://www.senore.com/Cricket/New-Zealand-c754 to prove his worth to the selectors.
The Indian middle order is also very solid, with Sachin Tendulkar, http://www.senore.com/Cricket/MS-Dhoni-c2028. Tendulkar has been in a very good touch, and would like to carry on his performances in the South African series.
The South African batsmen are also not short of confidence and skill. Openers Graeme Smith and Alviro Petersen have been in good touch of late. Smith did have a injury issue, but has been cleared ahead of the first Test. Petersen will also be confident of
a good show, as he scored a century against http://www.senore.com/Cricket/India-c750 on his debut.
Batting at number three, Hashim Amla has been the most impressive batsman of all. He has been very consistent and has no problem playing either the spinners or the fast bowlers. Like smith, Amla too had an injury scare, but recovered in time and will be
the player to look out for in the series.
The Indian middle order may be strong but the South African middle order is no less, if not better. Jacques Kallis is one of the most technically correct batsmen the world has ever seen. He can perform in any conditions and against any bowling attack. He
is also well supported by AB Devilliers, Ashwell Prince and Mark Boucher.
India has some exciting fast bowlers, and has Harbhajan Singh as their spinner. The Indian attack will be led by Zaheer Khan and Harbhajan Singh. Zaheer does have a few injury worries, but is expected to recover in time. Harbhajan will be looking to gain
some form, as the off-spinner has lost his touch in the recent past.
http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Morne-Morkel-c77722, which can be devastating for the Indian team. Both Steyn and Morkel will be looking forward to demolish the strong Indian batting
line-up.
Overall both teams look well balanced, and India has the confidence with them as they are in winning form. South Africa will also be dangerous since they have home advantage. It will be interesting to see whether the Indian batsmen are able to cope with
South Africa's fast and furious pace attack.
Tags: