Ken Borland

There is more than a hectare of playing area at the cavernous Melbourne Cricket Ground, the largest stadium in the southern hemisphere, but there will be no place to hide for the Proteas as they look to stay alive in the series in the second Test against Australia starting in the early hours of Boxing Day (SA time).

South African captain Dean Elgar confirmed on Saturday that the tourists will field the same bowling attack which did a good job in the first Test in Brisbane, so if there is a change to the team then it will come amongst the beleaguered batting line-up.

“Playing at the MCG is the stuff of childhood dreams and I personally watched the Boxing Day Tests on TV as a young kid. So it’s going to be a surreal moment going out on the field,” Elgar said.

“It’s the first time here for the whole squad really, we have not been in these waters before. But we have a massive job at hand, trying to level the series, and we can’t wait to get going.

“We do have our final XI picked and there was chat around the seven/four split. But the bowlers have retained their spots, so if there is a change then it will come in the batting.

“We’ve had two days of really intense preparation, but now the guys need to pitch up and respond. We’ve had good conversations, but talk is cheap now, we’d best put a performance on the board,” Elgar said.

The opening batsman said he hoped for a much fairer pitch than the minefield used for the first Test at the Gabba. A two-day Test was not only a massive fail for the game but a commercial disaster for Queensland cricket.

“The pitch feels a lot firmer now, it was quite wet yesterday [Thursday] from the rain. So it seems a good wicket, we want that balance between bat and ball, that’s all we ever ask for.

“I imagine it’s not that easy preparing pitches, but obviously we don’t want another two-day Test, hopefully that will never be repeated again.

“We have an attack that can win Test matches, but we need to get them into that situation and we know runs on the board are key. We had a bit of a hurdle last week, but we are starting afresh.

“We all feel in a good space. We had a brilliant build-up before the first Test, but then a bit of a hiccup. But both batting units had that bar one batsman. Maybe too much has been read into what happened last week,” Elgar said.

The beleaguered Proteas batsmen are determined to grasp the initiative and back up their bowlers to stay alive in the series when the second Test against Australia starts at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Boxing Day.

In a recurring theme for the current South African side, Australia could only score 218 and 35 for four in the first Test on the enigmatic Gabba pitch, but that was still enough to secure an easy victory as the Proteas could only muster 152 and 99 in their two innings.

Now, in the showpiece event of the Australian cricketing summer, with an expected crowd of 65 000 on the opening day, the Proteas batsmen are under the spotlight, their ability to stand up to one of the best attacks in cricket being questioned.

“We’re very excited, a Boxing Day Test at the MCG is what dreams are made of,” batting coach Justin Sammons said on Friday. “It’s a special challenge and we must just embrace it.

“Our bowling unit has been unbelievable in the World Test Championship and our batsmen really want to pull their weight and contribute. We’ve got to keep the belief and we do have it.

“We’re up against one of the best attacks in the game, so we’ve got to be strong in defence, get into good positions, and if there are opportunities to attack and score, then we’ve got to take them.

“We know we didn’t bat to our potential in Brisbane, but the guys are determined to get it right and I’m confident we will. We really need to be on our game,” Sammons said.

Although the MCG pitch is not as green as the Gabba monstrosity was, Sammons said it is softer and South Africa’s bowlers will surely be hoping it gets firmer in the couple of days remaining before the crucial Test begins.

But the attack could be reduced in terms of personnel as South Africa desperately try to bolster their batting, perhaps by including Theunis de Bruyn in a seven-strong batting line-up. “Theunis is looking really good in the nets, coming off a century at home just before the tour. He’s always up for a challenge and his biggest attribute is the positive energy he will bring,” Sammons said.

Whatever the starting XI that coach Malibongwe Maketa, captain Dean Elgar and convenor of selectors Victor Mpitsang settle upon, the Proteas need to harden up mentally in order to push back the confident Aussies.

“The work we’re doing is mostly in the mental space. The players need to have clear game-plans, commit to them and be decisive. Obviously they are always touching up on a couple of technical issues too, so they can trust their games,” Sammons said.

“But we have played our best cricket when we have been behind and we’ll take confidence from that. Against India and New Zealand at the start of the year, we came back strongly.

“So we are not afraid, we are up for the challenge and we know we have done it before,” Sammons said.

Khaya Zondo and the rest of the Proteas batsmen in Australia can’t do much now about the structural issues in South African domestic cricket that are undermining the batting at international level, but the Test rookie did mention some basics of the game that he and his colleagues can do better to ensure they get more runs on the board in the second Test starting in Melbourne on Boxing Day.

The 32-year-old Zondo had batted in just two previous Test innings before he was thrown on to the Gabba minefield, but his 36 not out in the second innings was a defiant, plucky effort that would have given him some confidence for the rest of the series.

“It’s just a matter of really applying ourselves, getting really focused and making sure that we are present at the crease at all times,” Zondo said on Wednesday.

“A lot of the guys are new to Test cricket and there is a lot of intensity at that level, so we need to really focus on the ball. We need to bring all our soul and might while there at the crease.

“You’ve got to find a way to work through the challenges. It’s been a tough year of international cricket for the Proteas, playing in New Zealand, England and Australia is tough.

“And most of the pitches have been really tough. Test cricket tests your technique, makes you play with a straight blade because the ball is always between the stumps and you have to make sure you defend them,” Zondo said.

Watching the ball seems like an obvious thing for a professional cricketer to do, but there are levels and Zondo said his focus on every delivery has been something he has had to work on, even between innings in Brisbane.

“In the first innings, when I was lbw [for a two-ball duck], the ball nipped back quickly. So in the second innings I was trying to react ahead of the ball, watch the ball more closely,” Zondo said.

“Australia bowled very well, they were on the money. They realised there was a lot happening and they bowled a lot straighter. So it takes better defence to ensure you keep the good balls out.

“Playing for the SA A side and a bit of ODI cricket [6 matches] helped me adjust to this level, but there’s quite a difference in intensity and execution of skills. They were ruthless in their skills and their basics are sharp.

“You need to really defend your stumps and watch your off-stump. There’s not much to score off, but you can’t just sit there and think you’ll survive, because the bowlers will work you out,” Zondo said.

The misguided few will say Dean Elgar is presiding over the corpse of South African cricket, but the Proteas skipper is adamant that his team can take on India, who he readily admits are the best side in the world, blow-for-blow in the series that starts at Centurion on Boxing Day.

India’s recent victory over New Zealand, winners of the inaugural World Test Championship earlier in the year, returned them to the No.1 ranking, with the Proteas currently languishing in sixth place. But India have never won a series in South Africa and Elgar believes this home ground advantage can give them an edge.

“India have been ranked No.1 for quite some time and, in my opinion, they are the top side, the ranking system is there for a reason,” Elgar said on Friday. “But I think the series will be pretty even and playing at home gives us a bit of an upperhand.

“India have improved a lot in terms of their travelling record and Virat Kohli has put a lot of emphasis on winning on the road. Their dream is to win a series here and as captain I’ll be trying to prevent that.

“It makes it an exciting series and we’re extremely mindful that they will come out firing, but then they know we will too. India’s strength is in their bowling, we’re very aware of their success as a unit.

“I’m sure they will exploit South African conditions well, the pitches do a bit more here than elsewhere around the world, but we’ve also got a very good pace attack. The first punch is going to be important,” Elgar said.

Selecting the right attack is going to be a complex issue for the Proteas because, in their expanded squad, they have eight different pace bowling options. But while South Africa have historically been biased towards using the fast men, Elgar all but confirmed that spinner Keshav Maharaj will play at SuperSport Park.

“It’s my home ground and conditions have changed a bit, there is sometimes some turn,” Elgar said. “We want to set the game up for days four and five, when hopefully the pitch will deteriorate a bit.

“Keshav will then come into play and he’s so adaptable that he doesn’t just contain, but he can also be a wicket-taker, a strike bowler at the right time. He’s been pretty amazing for us and we can’t neglect him.

“There’s no right or wrong answer when it comes to choosing the pace attack, but we will try to tie in with the style of play we’re trying to implement. We have the luxury of an extended squad so we are able to tick all the boxes.

“I like to think we have all our bases covered in terms of selection. It’s a good headache to have, we can exploit a few options. But I still favour having a spinner in the attack,” Elgar said.