adminRay Bande Senior Sports Reporter
THE country’s finest bowler in Test cricket, Tendai Chatara, believes Zimbabwe will not be mere pushovers when they face the world’s number one Test cricket team — the Proteas of South Africa — in an epic one-off Test showdown at Harare Sports Club.
South Africa have named an All-Star cast that is coming to Zimbabwe next week for the landmark encounter and the talented bowler — who traces his roots to Dangamvura high-density suburb in Mutare — is confident that they will give Proteas a good run for their money.
“It is really a great challenge to play against the best Test team in the world. They are on the top and we are ranked ninth hence the gap in quality is evident.
“They have the best bowler in the world and a host of other world class players, but we are not going to read too much into that. We are preparing for the match with a view to giving them a good run for their money. They will certainly not get it on a silver platter,” said Chatara in a telephone interview on Wednesday afternoon from Harare where he is in camp.
Nonetheless, it is the heavyweight versus the lightweight and the Proteas, fresh from roaring back to the top of the world Test rankings after their first Test series win in Sri Lanka in 21 years, are not taking their foot off the pedal and have named a very powerful team for the visit to Zimbabwe.
It is known that the Proteas have the number one ranked Test batsman, AB de Villiers, while skipper Amla is ranked number five in the world with our best batsman Brendan Taylor ranked 27th and Hamilton Masakadza 62nd in the world.
The South Africans are also powered by arguably the most potent attack in Test cricket in the world, although the Australians will argue long and hard to counter that assessment, with their pace spearhead, Dale Steyn, ranked the best Test bowler on the globe.
Vernon Philander is ranked number four in the world and Morne Morkel is on 16th place while our best active bowlers, in Test cricket, are Chatara at number 49 in the world and Tinashe Panyangara at number 51.
It’s South Africa’s first tour here for a Test tie since 2001 when the Proteas won 1-0, winning the first Test at Harare Sports Club by nine wickets, after the Zimbabweans were forced to follow on, with the second Test on a flat and lifeless Queens track ended in a draw.
Two years earlier the South Africans had won 2-0 and in the ‘95/’96 season had also won 1-0
With the Australians also coming here, for an ODI triangular that will involve the Proteas, for their first visit here in exactly 10 years,
Steve Mangongo will get his adventure as national coach underway, in the toughest manner possible, against the team rated as the best in the world, today, by the ICC.
Zimbabwe have drawn their last two Test series at home against Bangladesh (1-1) and Pakistan (1-1) but the Proteas will provide different and classy opposition, especially now that they have chosen to bring all their big guns.
South Africa Test squad:
Hashim Amla (captain); AB de Villiers; Kyle Abbott; Quinton de Kock; JP Duminy; Faf du Plessis; Dean Elgar; Imran Tahir; Morne Morkel; Wayne Parnell; Alviro Petersen; Vernon Philander; Dane Piedt; Dale Steyn; Stiaan van Zyl.
Online Reporter