South Africa waited 98 years for their first test series win in Australia, and then three came along in a row. Australia will be strongly fancied to avenge the defeats of 2008, 2012 and 2016 when the first test starts at the Gabba in Brisbane on Saturday but, after not winning for nearly a century, perhaps the Proteas’ winning streak has a little longer to run yet.
The Proteas are in contention for a place in the 2023 test World Championship final because of their bowling attack. Without a single batter averaging in the 40s, they managed to share an away series against current WTC holders, New Zealand, and beat both India and Bangladesh at home by adhering to the old adage: If you can’t score a lot of runs, score enough.
If South Africa can leave Australia’s shores with a share of the series, or even with just a single victory, and then beat the West Indies in both tests of their final WTC commitment at home in late February, they are almost certain to claim a place in the final to be played at The Oval in London in June – against Australia again.
In the last 3?0? encounters, there's not much separating the sides ??
— Proteas Men (@ProteasMenCSA) November 29, 2022
How do you see this #AusvSA Test series going?#BePartOfIt pic.twitter.com/NYONoqBAFh
The stage is set for an epic #AUSvSA Test series ????#BePartOfIt pic.twitter.com/8DNjQhtyxs
— Proteas Men (@ProteasMenCSA) December 1, 2022
As far as anything can be gauged by single-match of preparation for a three-test series, the tourists were justifiably satisfied with their 4-day outing against a Cricket Australia XI at the Allan Border Field close the Gabba.
A non-first class game involving 14 of the 16-man squad (only Heinrich Klaasen and Lizaad Williams did not feature) produced some notable performances against a team probably ranked as an Australia ‘3rd XI’ rather than an ‘A’ team.
Captain Dean Elgar led the way with 109 in the first innings while Rassie van der Dussen (95) and Theunis de Bruyn (88) almost certainly booked their places in Saturday’s starting XI with significant second innings scores.
Kyle Verreynne’s free-flowing 80 was also a welcome reminder of his form if he is to bat at No 6, as expected.
Rassie van der Dussen hit a patient 95 in a warm-up match against the Cricket Australia XI. Here he is talking about his preps for the #AUSvSA series ?? pic.twitter.com/VeV8AJpvY7
— SuperSport ?? (@SuperSportTV) December 12, 2022
That brings an end to our Tour Match against the Cricket Australia XI ??
— Proteas Men (@ProteasMenCSA) December 12, 2022
The game ends in a draw ??#AUSvSA #BePartOfIt pic.twitter.com/nqzaOkudGK
Kagiso Rabada looked refreshed rather than rusty after missing the Lions two pre-tour 4-day games while Anrich Nortje, Lungi Ngidi and Marco Jansen all took wickets.
Should any of them falter, Gerald Coetzee caught the eye as a vibrant replacement bowling at 150kph and grabbing a tailend hat-trick.
Four-Day Tour Match Update ??
— Proteas Men (@ProteasMenCSA) December 10, 2022
Gerald Coetzee (3?/3?6?) wrapped up the innings by claiming a hat-trick after Lungi Ndigi (3?/2?6?) ripped through the top order ??
Scorecard ??? https://t.co/A0XsrZde6D#AUSvSA #BePartOfIt pic.twitter.com/sjMZqHsJ7k
HISTORY
If the Proteas need inspiration they have need look no further than the extraordinary series which broke their Australian duck.
The 2008-09 series was the greatest in their history. South Africa chased 414 to win the first test in Perth and then fashioned a ridiculous escape from the jaws of defeat to clinch the series at the MCG.
South Africa were still 10 runs away from averting the follow-on when they lost their seventh wicket. Paul Harris (39) added useful runs with JP Duminy (166) but they were nothing compared to the 180 Duminy and Dale Steyn (76) added for the ninth wicket.
South African sealed an ‘unwinnable’ match at lunchtime on the fifth day. Steyn took five wickets in both innings for a match haul of 10-154, one of the greatest individual performances in SA’s test history.
And then there was Australia’s consolation win in the Graeme Smith ‘broken-hand’ match at the SCG.
In 2012 Australia and Michael Clarke (259) dominated the tourists and could have won in Brisbane but for the weather. The second test in Adelaide delivered one of the most absurd ‘escapes’ in test history with South Africa resuming on the fifth morning on 76-4 and batting out the day with Faf du Plessis scoring a century on debut and AB de Villiers making 33 from 220 deliveries, widely regarded by the cognoscenti of the game as among his greatest innings, given the context – and how out of context it was for him.
Still, Australia seemed on course for victory in Perth when they reduced the tourists to 75-6 and dismissed them for 225 thanks to 78* from du Plessis.
But that was where the script changed for the first time in the series. Australia were dismembered for 163 and Smith (84), Hashim Amla (196) and de Villiers (169) produced the most high-octane counter-attack in South Africa’s history for a second innings total of 569. The bowlers did the rest and another series victory had been burgled.
Only the 2016 series can be said to have been dominated by South Africa, but not without a crisis at the WACA in the first test when they lost Dale Steyn to a broken shoulder after just 12.4 overs in the first innings.
Vernon Philander, Rabada and spinner Keshav Maharaj kept the first innings scores to within two runs before Elgar (127) and JP Duminy (141) anchored a mammoth total of 540-8. Rabada’s 5-92 was at the forefront of the victory.
#AUSvSA 2016/17 Tour recap
— Proteas Men (@ProteasMenCSA) November 30, 2022
3? seamers
4?0? wickets
Kagiso Rabada, Vernon Philander and Kyle Abbott were ruthless with ball in hand, as we claimed a 2-1 series victory#BePartOfIt pic.twitter.com/sg82ZetMIA
Australian cricket was plunged into one of its deepest crises by what happened in Hobart a week later. Bowled out for 85 by Philander (5-21) and Kyle Abbott (3-41) in the first innings, they mustered just 161 second time around with Abbott (6-77) and Rabada (4-34) doing the damage for an innings and 80-run defeat.
Wholesale changes were made for the third test in Adelaide which the hosts won by seven-wickets but the bruising inflicted by a third successive series defeat would appear to have lasted a long time. And it seems they are still there, understandably.
Australia dominated fine South African teams for almost two decades before the last three series. This South African team, statistically, is not as good as those teams.
Australian revenge could hardly be better primed. Which makes the underdogs all the more dangerous.
Don’t discount history, old or recent…