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As the excitement built for the first ball of the Australian international summer, I unfortunately missed it due to coaching the NSW U15 State team for their upcoming National Championships.
But the future of Australian cricket is a good reason for missing the first ball.
On a whole, it was a fascinating Test match to watch unfold, despite the weather and a very flat wicket which determined the outcome of a draw.
Players on both sides are stating that there isn’t much you can take out of the game, but I’m sure that behind the scenes it is a different story.
So what can we make out of the first Test? What are the positives and negatives for both teams?
If we were to look at the individual performances, the shining lights were the batsmen, with Amla and his supreme patience winning in the end and continuing his great accumulation of runs, and Kallis’ performance confirming Mickey Arthur’s comments that he is one of the all-time greats of the game.
These two will continue to cause headaches for the Australians.
On the Australian side, the ever-so-steady Ed Cowan acted as the saving grace for the batting card and began a recovery campaign of “Us Aussies can fight back from anywhere”.
With so many questions about his place in the team and how slowly he scores, he answered the critics the best way an elite athlete can. By performing.
And it’s evident that Captain Courageous, Clarkey, has taken his own game to a whole new level. It is almost like he can turn water into wine and part the sea with one glorious cover drive.
His innings was beautiful to watch, but also his work behind the scenes and his innovative captaincy is turning this Australian team into a formidable force to contend with again.
Both teams would have obviously enjoyed the experience of the longer format, especially those coming straight from the Champions League. But they would also have a few concerns.
There are aspects in each team where things didn’t go their way and Australians will be concerned about Warner, and more importantly, Ponting’s low scores, re-igniting the conversation about his place in this team.
The loss of Dumminy was a massive blow to the South African team, who are now forced to make a big change. It was as though when he was ruled out, the South Africans knew that they couldn’t win and shut up shop.
As for Graeme Smith, a young man named Pattison managed to get under his collar and was successful both times.
I believe Pattison now has his measure and the added experience of the first Test will only give him more confidence.
Expect some verbal exchanges from both teams in the next Test as each side tries to unsettle the opposition any way they can.
The Aussies had a bounce in their step on the final day and showed a hunger and desire that certainly wasn’t seen in the South African team.
They also possess a good mix of young and experienced players and I feel this will see Australia win the next Test at Adelaide.
So our attention turns to the next battle to see what each team will do regarding their selections.
Australia will be hoping that Shane Watson is cleared to play, but only as an all-rounder, which I think is the right decision.
I have always felt that he would make a wonderful 4 or 5, almost in a similar mould to Kallis, both who are physically strong men.
With our pace bowling stocks, I feel that we have too much of the same with Pattison, Siddle and Hilfenhaus. There needs to be a point of difference and this is where Mitchell Starc is our man.
A left-arm bowler that swings the ball nicely at 140km is nice to have up your sleeve.
So Hilfenhaus will have to go.
South Africa will have to include leg-spinner Imran Tahir on the Adelaide wicket. And with short square boundaries, he will have to land the ball on a 20 cent coin otherwise the Australian batsmen will have a field day.
The only obstacle for both teams is trying to keep their fast bowlers behind the white line.
With a change in the ICC rules, the third umpire now has access to fixed cameras positioned at the bowling crease.
So no bowler will get away with bowling a no ball, especially if he takes a wicket. No team can afford to give one of the top 6 batsmen a second opportunity through a no-ball, so this may be the deciding factor.
My prediction is that Australia goes into this Test with a slight advantage having already bowled South Africa out at the GABBA; they’re the home team’ and Lyon is playing on his home ground.
The spinners on day four or five will play a vital role and I think Lyon will have it over Tahir.
Lisa Sthalekar is a current member of the NSW Breakers and the Commonwealth Bank Southern Stars. She recently returned from Sri Lanka after retaining the T20 World Cup which the team won in 2010 in the West Indies and has released her autobiography, Shaker, which you can purchase on her website
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