Sri Lanka were just bowled out for 42. What happened at Kingsmeade? For a very longtime, South African pitches overly favour the fast bowlers. A year ago, when India toured South Africa for a couple of Tests, the 2nd Test was completed in just 2 days. Now, at Kingsmeade, the Test may not finish in 2 days but it will definitely finish on the 3rd day. South Africa have a genuine chance of qualifying for the WTC finals in 2025. Including the one at Durban, they need to win 3 of the 4 Tests against Sri Lanka and Pakistan. This is pretty easy because neither Sri Lanka nor Pakistan will offer any resistance on those pitches that have extreme pace. Pitches with normal bounce would have sufficed but South Africa have taken it to the extreme and have prepared a pitch with excessive pace.
There is nothing wrong in doing so. Every team tries to maximise home advantage. Asian teams prepare pitches with lots of turn whereas England and New Zealand leave enough grass for their swing bowlers to extract the most out of the surface. With WTC points at stake and in the aim of winning games at home, the host nation prepare pitches that may not suit them but that definitely does not suit the touring sides. The ICC pitches committee will have a long and hard look at the pitch unless the game goes onto atleast the 4th day.
Anyway, South Africa definitely starts as the favourites against Sri Lanka and Pakistan. Sri Lanka does not have fast bowlers of repute and as such, they are unlikely to post any threat to South Africa. Pakistan, though they have fast bowlers, their bowlers have not performed at the highest level.
Not pushing for green top
Firdose Monda, the celebrated and brilliant South African writer, wrote an article on ESPNCRICINFO.COM that South Africa are not pushing for greentops for the home season. Temba Bavuma, the captain said, “We’re not at liberty to instruct the groundsmen to prepare what we’d like. We just try to play on whatever has been prepared,” Temba Bavuma, South Africa’s captain said in Pretoria. The coach echoed the same. “We just want good cricketing wickets,” he said. “That’s all I can ask for.”
However, judging by the scoreline, it seems that the pitch has a high bounce to trouble any batsman. It is possible that Sri Lanka was bowled out for a low score because of their inability to handle pace and bounce. They can also be blamed for jumping straight into a Test match without any practise, afterall, they just travelled from the low bouncing pitches of Sri Lanka to the bouncy South African wickets. However, what can explain South Africa’s abject surrender in the first innings if not for the pitch having excessive bounce?
Sri Lankan series
Ironically, Sri Lanka is the only Asian nation to have won a series in South Africa. They won at Durban and Gqeberha in 2019 though they lost the very next series without any win. South Africa will be stupid to handover any advantage in terms of pitch to the visiting team. They have never qualified for the WTC finals. This year offers a golden opportunity to do that. Win all the 4, they are guaranteed a spot in the final. Win 3, they can still qualify but hope that other results go their way.
South Africa have always prepared pitches with excessive bounce for Asian teams. In 2017, against India, it was taken to the extreme by the then coach, Otis Gibson. He wanted pitches with lots of bounce so that the likes of Steyn, Rabadda, Philander and Morkel could take advantage of. It is another matter that they still ended up losing one.
However, Sri Lanka is not as strong as India or as versatile as India. Hence, they are bound to struggle in this series irrespective of the fact that they are the only Asian nation so far to win a series there.
Onto the Pakistan series
Pakistan possess bowlers who could bowl at 145KMPH. They always had the reputation of possessing fast bowlers that can make the opposition shiver. The reputation of their fast bowlers, right from the days of Imran Khan through Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis to the current lot of Shaheen Afridi, Haris Rauf and Naseem Shah far exceeded their capacity to delivery. How else can we say? Pakistan never managed to win a series in the West Indies until they became so poor that anyone had a chance. They never could defeat Australia in Australia. South Africa is no different.
Anyway, in South Africa, their batsmen must be capable of handling Rabadda and the others. That will be their main challenge. South African pitches will help fast bowlers quite a lot that mediocre bowlers can come good. If the batsmen are unable to adjust to the pace and bounce, things could get really tough.
South Africa with their superior bowlers will certainly fancy their chances winning both the Tests.
Wrapping up what happened at Kingsmeade?
Sri Lanka bowled out for 42, which is not completely unexpected. South African pitches with their pace and bounce is tough to handle for Asian teams with the honourable exception of the Indians. Both Sri Lanka and Pakistan have unhill task on their hands.