Ken Borland

The West Indies are famous for producing the most ferocious fast bowling attack of all time, but conditions in the Caribbean have changed so much since then that low and slow pitches are now far more common than hard tracks with pace and bounce.

South Africa, nevertheless, have won their last three series in the West Indies largely through the use of menacing pace bowling. Of the Proteas bowlers who have taken more than 10 wickets over there, Allan Donald (20), Andre Nel (17), Dale Steyn (15) and Morne Morkel (14) all average less than 25.

Jacques Kallis, who was certainly genuinely quick when the mood grabbed him, has taken the most wickets (27) on tour there, but played four more Tests (12) than any other bowler. Left-arm spinner Nicky Boje is the third-highest wicket-taker, but his 20 scalps came at an average of 40.55.

Current coach Mark Boucher also played 12 Tests in the Caribbean and it looks like the Proteas will be backing their fast bowlers again when the first Test starts on Thursday at Gros Islet, St Lucia.

“These are new conditions for us because we have not played here in the rainy season, normally it’s warmer and dryer. But it has felt more like England: overcast and although I have never seen it rain over here before, the last three days have been rainy. So there is a lot of movement and we are using the Duke ball and not the Kookaburra we used to over here. The Duke stays harder for longer and ball-maintenance will be key.

“We have got the right balance in the bowlers we have over here, we have four seamers that are probably hoping to play and then a spinner. Kagiso Rabada, Anrich Nortje and Lungi Ngidi are all different and Keshav Maharaj can bowl well on any surface. Then there’s Wiaan Mulder too. We want to put the West Indies under pressure with ball and bat,” bowling coach Charl Langeveldt said.

So it seems unlikely that wrist-spinner Tabraiz Shamsi will play and George Linde, who kind of does the JP Duminy role of back-up spinner who can bat, is likely to lose out to seam-bowling all-rounder Mulder.

Langeveldt admitted that the Proteas have not done themselves justice in Test cricket recently, and new captain Dean Elgar is certainly giving his team no peace about it in their team chats so far.

“We really want to turn our Test cricket around and the captain has talked about doing the basics for the longest. It might mean boring cricket, but that’s what you want in Test cricket. Dean certainly brings something different, he demands professionalism, discipline and that team ethos, which is something we’ve needed to revisit.

“He has asked the senior players to lead by example and to speak to the youngsters. We need to keep our disciplines for long periods,” Langeveldt said.

Sisanda Magala is a “very, very good bowler” are words you are likely to hear from time to time, but when they come from one of the greatest bowlers of all time, then it is time to sit up, take notice and put him in the Proteas starting XI.

Magala’s fan is none other than Dale Steyn, indisputably a legend of the game because he has taken over 400 Test wickets at an average lower than all but four of the other 16 bowlers in that club. Steyn has previously tweeted how impressed he is with Magala and on Tuesday he explained to The Citizen why he rates the 30-year-old so highly ahead of what will hopefully be his Proteas debut in the ODI series against Pakistan starting on Friday.

But as Steyn reveals, they did not have a very good start to their relationship …

“The first time I played against him was for the Titans against the Warriors and I had heard amazing things about him. So I gave him so much stick, I basically just abused him, because I wanted to see what he was made of. He was upset, but after the game I spoke to him and told him I just did that because I heard you were really good. I wasn’t sure he liked me much after that though … ” Steyn said.

“Then we played together at the Cape Town Blitz, and as team-mates he just impressed me more and more. He’s really quick, he’s a good fielder, extremely athletic for his size, and just a flippen nice guy. He has that fight in him. He has a bit of a strange action so he’s quicker than you think.

“I always look for things that make someone better than the rest and he has a wicked wrist – it’s really cocked back, whippy, giving him extra pace. With good coaching and as he gets more familiar with how to use that wrist, he could get even quicker.”

There have been whispers that Magala’s size – he is certainly burly – is considered an issue by Proteas management and is why he has not yet taken the field for the national team. But Steyn says his physical dimensions and not passing certain fitness tests should not be a factor in selection.

“The testing is one thing but I don’t mind if a guy looks slightly overweight as long as he is hitting the same numbers or even a bit better over a period of time, it’s only a problem if there’s a massive slump. For some people it’s just very difficult for them to do anything about their weight, but I’ve often seen cricketers lose a couple of kilograms and then they can’t hit the ball as far or bowl as well.

“As professional cricketers, we don’t necessarily have to look like Michael Jordan or Usain Bolt,’ Steyn said.