Former Indian batsman Wasim Jaffer believes Team India would have a tough time for them during their forthcoming South Africa tour. The three-match Test series at SuperSport Park in Centurion is set to kick off the tour on 26th December. According to Jaffer, in the Test series, South African pacers are prepared to give a tough fight to the Indian hitters.
As India visited South Africa in 2018, Kagiso Rabada was one of the hosts’ main assets. The speedy had 15 wickets in 3 games back then, as the host team has won the 3-match series 2-1. Jaffer also added that Rabada, will contribute much to the side and the Indians must be cautious while tackling him.
“South Africa has a decent fast bowling attack, there is no doubt it (on Tuesday, CSA said that fast bowler Anrich Nortje has been ruled out of the series because of a recurring hit-related injury). Rabada is one of the best. They have sufficient quality“.
“Their pace bowling will definitely challenge India. But their batting is not the same it was before. Nonetheless, it will be a challenging tour for India,” Jaffer told.
Indian fast-bowling is very experienced now: Wasim Jaffer
wasim Jaffer stated before the Tests that Team India must score more than 400 runs if they are to get off to a successful beginning. The experienced stated that although bowling is not an issue for the visitors, it is their batting lineup that must perform in difficult conditions.
“The Indian fast bowling is very experienced now. Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammad Shami have a lot of experience. I have been saying that if India scores 400 plus, it is more likely that it will win matches. The challenge is for the batters to put scores on the board“.
Despite losing the series, India’s captain Virat Kohli finished as the series’ highest run-scorer with 286 runs at an avg of 47.66. According to Jaffer, India has a competitive batting order and is no longer totally dependant on its captain.
“In 2018, Virat was the only one who got the runs. Now, India’s batting is more balanced in the top six. Rishabh (Pant) can change the game if he bats for one or one and a half hours,” Jaffer added.
