South Africa aiming for top spot on ICC Test team rankings – Cricket News Update
The rising South African side will be aiming for a 3-0 clean sweep in their upcoming Test series in New Zealand, in a bid to grab the sought after top spot on ICC's Test rankings.
While the tour will officially commence with the first of three T20Is on February 17, they will be followed by a three-match ODI series, and the much talked about Test bouts, which are due to kick off from March 7 at the University Oval in Dunedin.
The current best Test team is England, with a rating of 118, closely chased by the Proteas, who are just 1 rating behind the league leaders.
However, with England being recently whitewashed in a Test series (3-0) by http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Allan-Robert-Border-c43726 de Villiers’ squad have a chance to creep up the standing ladder, provided they manage to outsmart the Kiwis.
The South Africans can further take motivation from their recent Test performances, which include a series victory against http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Sri-Lanka-c758 (2-1) – their first home success since 2008.
On the contrary, the squad has never won a Test series 3-0 against the Kiwis, and will have a stiffer test to overcome, considering the ominous form of their counterparts, who are riding high on their recent success against http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Zimbabwe-c3045.
Head coach http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Gary-Kirsten-c58527 anticipates a tough battle for his team, keeping in mind the unfamiliar conditions Down Under.
"For any team it takes a bit of time to adjust to the weather and wickets," he explained. "The wickets can be quite different every time you come here."
http://www.senore.com/Cricket/South-Africa-c757 was eliminated from the 2011 World Cup following a quarter-final defeat by New Zealand, and while Kirsten expects verbal attacks from the hosts, he is convinced his team will remain unaffected and focused.
“I don't think we're going to be worrying too much about what http://www.senore.com/Cricket/New-Zealand-c754 are doing," he said.
Aside from a boost in rankings, the competing teams have the incentive of a hefty financial reward, as the team at the top of the Test rankings will be awarded US$175,000 by the http://www.senore.com/Cricket/ICC-World-Cup-2011-c100625.
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