Will Pakistan ‘S(u)affer’ in the Battle of Pace?

A storm is brewing in the cricketing world. Two of arguably the top three pace bowling attacks would be on display in ‘the paradise of pacers’. The South Africans have very recently steamrolled over a very inexperienced New Zealand attack. Pakistan’s batting lineup isn’t as brittle, but in contemporary cricket, their batting isn’t exactly what you can refer to as stable. ‘Fireworks’ would be an apt word, a moment of brilliance and a moment of lost magic followed by regret on what could have been. Therefore, when Geoffrey Boycott recently mentioned that it isn’t exactly about SA’s batting or Pakistan’s bowling, he couldn’t be closer to the bull’s eye. How Pakistan bat will define the series.

Pakistan tour SA after half a decade, which means that most of their batsmen and bowlers are looking forward to a first-of-its-kind experience. South Africa cannot really prepare a seaming and bouncy wicket as that could backfire. That is the kind of threat most tourists cannot boast of unleashing. But Pakistan can. And they will, blended with Ajmal, a demolishing machine in his own right that doesn’t rely on the inconsistency of a surface. Philander is fit for the first test and so we can expect the new ball to talk, subtly sometimes, ferociously at other times. Steyn strikes every 42 balls and has a huge banana out-swinger that gets the very best squared up. The spicy Philander-Steyn versus Junaid-Gul contest is almost mouthwatering. What completes the platter is the battle of the giants, Morkel and Irfan, the latter almost set to make his test debut. It is imperative for Pakistan bowlers not to get carried away with the pitch, the kind of which they wouldn’t have seen in a long while.

However, where there is a huge gap is in the top 7. Smith, Petersen, Amla, Kallis, AB de Villiers and Faf du Plessis form a top 6 that is as good as it gets. Rudolph and Peterson, who might get a game because of his recent form as a spinner, will add to the batting might. Pakistan will rely heavily on Younis Khan, the way India had relied on Sachin while playing on bouncy pitches. Taufiq Umar has played here in the past and can be a gritty opener. Nasir Jamshed, with an impressive ODI average over 50, is all set for a Test debut, owing largely to his exploits against India. Hafeez, Asad Shafiq, Azhar Ali and Misbah would complete the batting lineup. Shafiq and Azhar Ali have shown against a high quality English attack that they can hold fort under pressure. But, doing the same, when the ball consistently hits the upper half of the bat and sometimes whistles past your face, spraying the smell of leather and aggression, needs some real skill.

South Africa would want to think smartly about the pitch. Bowling being the opponents’ strength, South Africa might want to go for tracks that aren’t exactly minefields. That way they will negate the Pakistani bowlers and hope that the quality of Philander and Steyn can prevail over an inexperienced and often edgy batting lineup. If the South Africans play to their form, they might end up making it a walk in the park with their batting class. Younis Khan, Misbah and Mohammad Hafeez hold the key if Pakistan is to run South Africa close. But cricket lovers would hope that at least one of the Pakistani youngsters make a name for himself.  That, well and truly would make the contest tighter than what it seems at the outset. All said and done, one thing is for sure – there wouldn’t be a dull moment at any stage.