South Africa have won their past two Test series in Australia. But the loss of champion batsman AB de Villiers now leaves them as outsiders to win the three-Test series which starts in Perth this month.
The Proteas had shaped as extremely tough opponents and that series still is unlikely to be easy for Australia, with South Africa boasting a fearsome pace attack. But it is impossible to overstate the importance of the loss de Villiers, who was this week ruled out of the tour to Australia, needing surgery on an injured elbow.
The South African skipper is as good as any batsman in the Test format. He has a wonderful Test record against Australia, with 1641 runs at 48, including five centuries. In South Africa’s consecutive series wins in Australia, De Villiers was phenomenal, cracking 519 runs at 58 across the six Tests.
A fantastically versatile batsman, de Villiers is able to change gears seamlessly within an innings or a match. He can switch from stonewalling to slaughtering as if it is the simplest thing in the world.
This is a truly rare ability and one which has made him even more valuable to his team than his career Test average of 50 would suggest.
Never was this unique talent highlighted better than across his past two Tests in Australia. In his most recent Test down under, de Villiers went ballistic at Perth, thrashing 169 at nearly a run-a-ball as the Proteas rolled over Australia to win the series.
The previous week he had dead batted for hour after hour, crawling to 33 from 220 balls to help save the Adelaide Test. They were two astonishing yet oh-so-different innings. I cannot think of another batsman in Test cricket currently who could produce such displays back-to-back.
In this way he adds amazing balance to the South African batting line-up. Few players are better at shoring things up after a collapse or, alternatively, laying waste to an attack.
Australian spearhead Mitchell Starc will have most of the South African batsmen worried after his remarkable returns in the past 12 months.
Fresh from hoarding 24 wickets at 15 in the Test series in Sri Lanka, Starc is arguably the most intimidating bowler in the world. He wouldn’t have worried de Villiers though. When Mitchell Johnson was bowling at a level rarely seen in cricket history back in 2014, de Villiers played him with ease.
As Australia beat the Proteas 2-1 in South Africa early in 2014, Johnson ran roughshod over the home batsmen, snaring 22 wickets in three Tests. He bullied every South African batsman apart from de Villiers, who looked in complete control.
The Australian pacemen will be very relieved they don’t have to bowl to the South African legend this summer. It leaves the Proteas with a vulnerable batting line-up. It places a huge burden on the shoulders of his teammate Hashim Amla, who also has a dominant Test record against Australia, with 1280 runs at 51.
Beyond Amla, however, the South African batting looks thin. Rookie Stephen Cook is likely to open with Dean Elgar, who floundered against Australia last time around, averaging 18 with the bat from three Tests.
Veterans Faf du Plessis and JP Duminy both had great starts to their Test career but have underachieved for several years now in the Test format. After Amla, South Africa’s next best batsman is wicketkeeper Quentin de Kock, who carted for a magnificent 178 in the first ODI on Friday. The problem is that de Kock typically bats down at six or seven.
The hole left at four by de Villiers is massive. If Australia are able to limit the influence of Amla it is hard to imagine how the Proteas can win their third Test series on the trot in Australia.
mickey smith
Roar Rookie
Du Plessis was a better performer than ABD during their school days and pre-international career, he was scoring piles of runs. ABD used to be the second fiddle and Faf used to be the main man. This is coming straight from AB's autobiography. Faf's batting average in ODIs is low because of the positions he has batted from the year 2011 to 2014. Since September 2014, when he started batting at 3, he averages more than 50.00 in ODIs. He had an average close to 50 until the last year's disastrous tour of India when he was totally out of touch and form, his test batting average fell down drastically in that series, and the following series against England. He is getting back in touch this season. Hope to see some good innings from him. So, yes du Plessis is close to ABD. Having said that, ABD is ABD and no one can match his class.
deccas
Guest
you've nailed it sadly!
Amrit
Roar Guru
In one-dayers he and Amla set the platform, De Villiers and Duminy add the finishing touches; De Villiers is quite blunt when it comes to chasing; Du Plessis averages more than 40 I guess in tests and one-dayers, and around 38 in T20is Personally I rank him higher in terms of brains than De Villiers U can read this article I guess http://www.sportskeeda.com/cricket/analysing-south-africa-loss-indore-reasons-choking-one-day-cricket
The Bush
Roar Guru
Du Plessis isn't even playing the same sport compared to De Villiers...
Punter
Guest
Jeff, that is a ridiculous comment and demonstrates what a poor fan you are. Agree with Anindya, why didn't the pitches return to normal when NZ and WI came over the following year? You can't tell me CA bowed down to them as well.
Ronan O'Connell
Expert
"should the disgraceful pitch from last year have been deemed as ‘not up to test standard’ by the ICC???" Yes it should have, it was one of the worst Test pitches I have ever seen in a Western country.
Ronan O'Connell
Expert
Du Plessis is as good as De Villiers?!
Anindya Dutta
Roar Guru
I so Love these rants! Let's assume CA does whatever the BCCI asks them to do. That's a big assumption and I would be astounded if CA agreed to change the nature of Aussie pitches just because BCCI wanted the Indian team to score more than 300. So I will leave this assumption in the category of rants. However let's argue for a moment that it was indeed the reason why the tracks were flat 2 years ago. India hasn't toured Australia since then and won't for a while. So why are the pitches still flat tracks? 2 years I would imagine is enough to get a pitch back to its original condition? So is the CA licking the boots of all other Cricket Associations as well? Perhaps it's my duh day today. Can someone explain how this works exactly? ?
Amrit
Roar Guru
I entirely disagree I think South Africa has enough in their tank, especially in this format to grind out of any situation- Dean Elgar is as dogged as u can get, so is Bavuma- Du Plessis and Amla are as good as De Villiers, only that they can't shift gears quick enough; the pace battery would be testing for Australia, I would as far as to say it is the Proteas to lose in this format, Ronan
Jeff Lehman
Roar Rookie
BCCI is dictating how the pitches in the world, should behave like. RIP great cricket pitches
Jeff Lehman
Roar Rookie
Orders from BCCI were to prepare flat tracks for the India tour of Australia 2014-15 so that Indian batsmen could score some runs. Cricket Australia obviously could not say no to BCCI. BCCI has killed bat v ball cricket surely, it's now all bat. Just to make sure Virat Kohli the flat track bully could score some runs, the Indian team could score some runs which they failed to do on the previous two tours to Australia and England (not even reaching to 300 in any innings). Dhoni and company knew they are not capable of playing in lively pitches, so the Cricket world has to suffer and we are deprived of watching good cricket on once great Aussie pitches. They are flat roads now.
Jeff
Guest
The pitches in Australiana are surely flat roads now, it started in 2014-15 tour of India. BCCI ordered Cricket Australia to make flat pitches so that the Indian batsmen could score some runs, othereise they could not even reach 300 in their previous tours to Australia, and in England. Ni wonder the flat track bully and overrated Virat Kohli scored piles of runs in the 2014-15 tour and India lose by 2-0..unlike the previous tours when they lost by huge margins (but somehow still among the top two test teams and finally becoming the number one test team) by winning only at home. Surely ICC is Indian Cricket Council and Cricket Australia kicks the boots of BCCI, it's a shameful situation for cricket
Tim Holt
Roar Guru
Just on the topics of pitches David i agree wholeheartedly and view the demise of Australian pitches as one of cricket's great tragedies. All used to have unique personalities with the WACA arguably the best pitch in world cricket On the topic of the WACA should the disgraceful pitch from last year have been deemed as 'not up to test standard' by the ICC???? i think if they were serious about the future of test cricket that it should have.
Nudge
Guest
Australia's worst effort in an Ashes series is 3-0. England have been beaten by Australia 5-0 at least 3 times
David a Pom
Guest
Aussie batting won't be suspect at home on the flat tracks. They'll be racking up 400+ scores, before getting humiliated next time they go overseas.
David a Pom
Guest
Australia got those scores in that series because they batted well and England bowled badly. Times have changed, pitches are now roads and the consequences of that is being felt on Australian cricket. First 3-0 to Sri Lanka, next will be 4-0 to India, and the next time they go to England could quite plausibly be 5-0.
Nudge
Guest
Spot on David the Pom, I just prey the wickets aren't as flat as the 2013 ashes when Australia scored 500 in four of the five tests, and England in fact struggled to make 200 in any of there innings. That was the series when one of your batsman went home in tears because Johnson was bowling to fast, Swanny dogged it on his mates and quit mid tour, because if he played one more test his test match bowling average would have finished over 30, and Swanny, Broady, and Jimmy found the wickets that flat that when they batted,it was so easy they thought they could back so far away, that they were nearly standing on the square leg umpires toes. Too funny.
David a Pom
Guest
Ahh yes, back to the roads of Australia. I'm sure all the Aussie flat trackers (literally every batsman on the team) will be batting like Bradmans, maintain their inflated 50+ averages, before they head to the cauldron that is India next Feb to find out yet again that they are the biggest flat track bullies probably in cricket history.
Tanmoy kar
Guest
Without A.B. deVilliars South African batting will become weak a bit, but youngsters like DeCock and Bavuma may come up with big scores. Faf and J.P. are also in good form, one can see in the first two ODIs which Australia loose badly.
Anindya Dutta
Roar Guru
This series is Australia's to lose. I won't say it will be a walkover because the Aussie batting is suspect, but I just don't see how the Proteas can possibly prevail this time with the team they have.