Venue: Kingsmead
Team: Durban Super Giants
Capacity: 20 000
History:
Situated less than two kilometres away from the Indian Ocean shoreline on South Africa's warm east coast, Kingsmead Stadium is amongst the country's oldest grounds. In fact, the venue will celebrate its centenary almost exactly 100 years to the day that it hosted its first test - 18 January 1923 - when the first SA20 ball is bowled by the Durban SG against Joburg Super Kings on 11 January 2023.
For the better part of its existence, the wicket had been known as a seamer-friendly one, but that profile has somewhat subsided in the past decade when spin has become the ideal.
Legends like Neil Adcock, Peter and Shaun Pollock, Mike Procter, Malcolm Marshall as well as Trevor Goddard all enjoyed a large amount of success playing at Kingsmead, although that joy of the ball fizzing around off a green surface has now shifted to the spinners loving to play in Durban. Proof in the pudding is the success that Keshav Maharaj, the domestic captain of the Dolphins, and his deputy, Prenelan Subrayen, have enjoyed in the past few years. It is widely believed that the ocean tide also plays a huge role in the spinning success, which has led to teams even playing as many as three slow bowlers in recent years at the ground.
Since the 1980s, the ground has been extensively redeveloped, although it still has the traditional mixed with the modern in the form of grass embankments and more fanciful stands. The two bowling ends are known as the Umgeni and Old Fort Road Ends. In total, this famous venue has staged 45 test matches, including South Africa's first at home, post-isolation, at the venue when they faced India in November 1992. There have also been 47 One-Day Internationals and 15 Twenty20 Internationals played at Kingsmead.
Best known for:
Despite hosting all those international games, the ICC One-Day and T20I World Cups and the Indian Premier League (IPL), the most famous story from all those games is that of the 1939 timeless test between South Africa and England that had to be curtailed due to fears that the tourists will miss the boat home. The match lasted 12 days, with play taking place on nine of those days as the game was declared a draw.
There was another stand-out moment in September of 2007 involving Indian superstar Yuvraj Singh. The all-rounder became the first player to strike six sixes in an over of a T20 international when he took Stuart Broad of England to the cleaners.
Players suited to the venue:
Local knowledge will prove vital, particularly when one zooms in on the key strength of the Super Giants - spin. Keshav Maharaj and Prenelan Subrayen know all about the conditions. Simon Harmer backing them could make them a formidable force.
What to expect: An electric atmosphere, enthusiastic crowds and plenty of heat. Apart from the new ball zipping around, expect the spinners and swingers of the ball, to a degree, to play a major role. Durban gets extremely humid at this time of year too, so expect the conditions to hamper excessively high scoring.
T20 Team stats:
Highest T20 scores (Domestic and International): 218/4 by India v England (2007) and 214/2 by Dolphins v Lions (2014).
Lowest T20 scores (Domestic and International): 73 by Kenya v New Zealand (2007) and 70 by Dolphins v Titans (2015)
