India vs South Africa: Top-five battles to watch out for
No contest between two giants however, is complete without attention to minute details and a systematic strategy with attention to man-to-man marking. Here is taking a look at the players who are most likely to battle each other for bragging rights and for one-upmanship during India's tour of South Africa.
- Shubhodeep Chakravarty
- Updated: December 02, 2013 02:31 PM IST
No two teams in the recent history of cricket have played the sport with as much intensity as India and South Africa. While Graeme Smith and his men top the ICC Test rankings, India - currently second, is the best outfit in ODI cricket. So, when the two teams face off against each other this December, expect a rip-roaring contest over three ODIs and two Tests.
No contest between two giants however, is complete without attention to minute details and a systematic strategy with attention to man-to-man marking. Here is taking a look at the players who are most likely to battle each other for bragging rights and for one-upmanship.
MS Dhoni vs Graeme Smith
MS Dhoni is an outstanding player. Most though agree that it is his shrewd cricketing sense that poses maximum threat to opposing teams. While this man has led his team to almost every title in international cricket and has helped the side go past its inability to win outside home, Dhoni remains hungry for more success and has hardly ever allowed complacency to set in. True, there have been some bad patches but the manner and magnitude of fight backs after lows makes this team, arguably, the most feared.
Even the most feared teams though have their moments of despair. South Africa skipper Graeme Smith will be hoping for precisely such a moment when he welcomes India to his home. Not known to be intimidated easily, Test captain Smith - elder to Dhoni by just a few months, will look to out-think his counterpart and maintain his side's commendable record at home against touring India. After all, the Proteas have won an impressive seven and drawn six of the 15 Tests between the two sides (in South Africa) since 1992.
Both teams are banking on momentum and both skippers are on a high, with the added confidence of marshaling in-form players. In the end, adulations are expected to go to the skipper who edges past his counterpart in the field as well as off it.
In numbers
Overall Tests won by Dhoni as skipper: 26 of 49 with 12 draws
Overall Tests won by Smith as skipper: 46 of 91 with 19 draws
Zaheer Khan vs Dale Steyn
Fast bowling is about raw aggression, intimidation and sheer pace. Fast bowling is also about experience and this is what India's Zaheer Khan will be banking on when he leads a bunch of young but immensely talented Indian seamers in South Africa. A veteran of 88 Test matches, Zaheer makes his return to the national team after a year. The 35-year-old, however, is hardly rusty. In fact, he appeared better (and fitter) than ever before, in recent domestic matches. While a rich haul of 295 wickets from past matches will be adding to his confidence, Zaheer is expected to bowl with youthful exuberance once again. On fast and bouncy wickets in South Africa - where he has 23 wickets from six Tests, will further add to his confidence while mentoring the younger pacers will make him doubly dangerous.
Dangerous is a word though that is globally reserved for Dale Steyn. Nicknamed Steyn Remover and Steyn Gun, this South African has slightly lesser experience than Zaheer but has made up for it by claiming more wickets and at 30, also has age on his side. Known to be menacing regardless of conditions, he was once quoted as saying that fast bowling is as much about bowling fast as it is about appearing intimidating - an attitude that sends shivers across the pitch. Steyn has 340 scalps from 67 Tests and at home -where has 192 wickets from 35 matches - he becomes even more formidable.
In numbers
Zaheer's record in Tests:
Overall: 295 wickets from 88 matches at an average of 32.25. Best figures of 7/87.
In South Africa: 23 wickets from six matches at an average of 32.52. Best figures of 4/62.
Dale Steyn's record in Tests:
Overall: 340 wickets from 67 matches at an average of 22.66. Best figures of 7/51.
In South Africa: 192 wickets from 35 matches at an average of 20.56.
Shikhar Dhawan vs Hashim Amla
One is a prodigal talent who took the cricket world by storm this year. The other is a skilled veteran who has plied his trade with resounding success for over eight years. Both India and South Africa will bank on Shikhar Dhawan and Hashim Amla respectively, to set a firm base and then propel the innings forward.
Dhawan has been in phenomenal form since his Test debut against Australia in March this year. With the ability to convert solid starts to big knocks and score at an unforgiving pace, Dhawan became the first to complete six ODI tons this year. For someone who has a strike rate of 94 in ODIs and 103 in Tests, Dhawan has been quite nonchalant through his missions of demolition. And to expect him to ease up on pacey South Africa tracks will be a blunder, much like it would be to underestimate Amla's resilience.
Amla has been a proven performer for his side and his team relies upon his composed style of batting. Much like Dhawan, Amla converts his starts into big knocks without letting the opposition formulate concrete plans. Amla boasts of an excellent conversion rate as he has 20 tons and 27 fifties to his name in Tests. And while he may not bat with as much aggression in Tests as Dhawan does, his strike rate of 52.44 in the longest format does go up to over 90 in ODIs.
Both players, when compared have glaring differences in terms of experience and numbers. They also have their unique styles. Dhawan and Amla though are equally dangerous prospects for opponents because of their similar and voracious hunger to score big, at No. 1 and No. 3 respectively.
In numbers
Shikhar Dhawan in Tests: Three Tests, one century and a highest score of 187.
Hashim Amla in Tests: 71 Tests, 20 centuries and a highest score of 311.
Shikhar Dhawan in ODIs: 28 ODIs, five centuries, strike rate of 94.13, average of 46.88 and a highest score of 119.
Hashim Amla in ODIs: 81 ODIs, 11 centuries, strike rate of 90.70, average of 53.26 and a highest score of 150.
Virat Kohli vs AB de Villiers
The royal battle for the No. 1 ODI batsman ends here - Kohli vs de Villiers!
Both Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers have been superstars for their teams this year and have played epic knocks to bring opposing teams down. Such has been their dominance in the 50-over format that Australia's run-machine this year George Bailey could hardly catch up from his third-ranked spot despite scoring heavily.
Kohli has been pivotal to India's rise and has scored tons of runs this year. Against West Indies in November, he became the joint-fastest to complete 5000 ODI runs, with Viv Richards. In fact, a look at his scores in his last ten ODI innings shows the consistency, the quality and the talent - 19, 99, 86, 0, 115*, 68, 100*, 61, 68*, 14, 115. In fact, year 2013 has been extremely kind to Kohli with the Delhi batsman raking in 1237 ODI runs - the highest scorer. He has been considered MS Dhoni's successor for a while now but many now have also started expecting him to replicate Sachin Tendulkar's feats.
AB de Villiers however has always liked to make his own mark. The wicket-keeper batsman may not have as many ODI runs to show this year as Kohli (Protean has 926), but he also has the added responsibilities of leading the ODI side, batting in the middle order and wicket-keeping. De Villiers has struck a remarkable balance between his various responsibilities and therefore, is not only at par with Kohli but perhaps exceeds his overall value to the team.
In numbers
Virat Kohli in ODIs: 122 ODIs, 17 centuries, strike rate of 88.92, average of 52.77 and a highest score of 183.
AB de Villiers in ODIs: 155 ODIs, 15 centuries, strike rate of 93.30, average of 48.75 and a highest score of 146.
Virat Kohli in Tests: 20 Tests, four centuries and a highest score of 116.
AB de Villiers in Tests: 87 Tests, 17 centuries and a highest score of 278*.
Cheteshwar Pujara vs Jacques Kallis
Reliable and consistent - these are the two words that best describe Cheteshwar Pujara and Jacques Kallis. While there is a huge difference of 149 Tests between the two, Pujara has shown the same signs that a young Kallis did when he started out.
Pujara averages 65 in his 15 Test matches and has managed to stage several rescue acts for India. Two of his five Test hundreds are double tons, both against quality teams like England and Australia. While he will now be looking to use his strong Test showing to demand a place in the ODI side as well, Kallis has been there and done a whole lot of that.
At 38, Kallis in nearing the dusk of his career but he continues to give his cent per cent in all formats of the game. Considered one of the best all-rounders in contemporary cricket, Kallis' Test average of 72.04 against India is second only to his average of 79 against Bangladesh and far exceeds his overall average of 55.44. To add to his credentials, he also has 18 Test wickets from 16 matches against India.
Overall, Kallis may get more bets placed on his name because of his experience and all-round abilities. Pujara however has the potential to send shockwaves through his solitary skill - batting with unwavering concentration.
Talent and skills cannot be made through a fair numerical comparison owing to vast difference in experience.