Cape Town — There’s nothing that compares to the drama of Test cricket and even more so when Lord’s hosts the series-opener between England and South Africa today.
All the talk building up to the first Test has been about whether the Proteas will be able to cope with England’s new all out attacking strategy, commonly known as “Bazball”, that has been driven by captain Ben Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum.
The Proteas are staying clear of any such slogans with coach Mark Boucher warning his players they may have to down a shot of tequila if they merely mention the “B-word”.
The IOL Sport show caught up with some of the world’s finest cricket writers in our own Stuart Hess, Daniel Gallan (“Guardian”) and Dean Wilson (“Daily Mirror”) from the UK to provide their analysis before the three-match series.
Hess and Wilson believe the Proteas’ battery of fast bowlers, led by the fit-again Kagiso Rabada, will counter England’s powerhouse batting unit, but Gallan claims that the likes of Jonny Bairstow will keep coming hard and that the only chance the visitors have is to match “fire-with-fire”.
It is all set up for an intriguing clash of styles that will spark us all with more to discuss in the next IOL Sport Show.
IOL Sport