Published: Oct 17, 2016, 03:58 PM (IST)
Edited: Oct 17, 2016, 03:58 PM (IST)
After whitewashing Australia in One-Day International (ODIs) by 5-0 at home due to the visitor’s lack of bowling expertise, South Africa’s stand-in skipper Faf du Plessis believes it has left a bit of scar on Australia mentally. South Africa are very soon going to visit Australia for their Test series which will begin from November 3 at Waca Ground in Perth. South Africa won their previous two Test series in Australia then but the circumstances are different now. In 2008-09 and 2012-13, they were fresh off victories in England, and while they were ranked No. 1 on their last trip to Australia, South Africa are now in fifth place after a difficult 2015-16 season, especially with their defeat against India in the last Test series. FULL CRICKET SCORECARD: Australia vs South Africa, 1st Test at W.A.C.A. Ground in Perth
Speaking to ESPNCricinfo.com, du Plessis said “To beat Australia the way we did, really convincingly and not giving them a sniff, will leave a bit of a scar on them mentally. I also appreciate that a Test team is a different team, and probably a more mature team, but if we can start really well in that first Test match to remind them that we are in the same space as a Test team, we will have a really good tour.”
Du Plessis also felt that this was not the Australia force that usually plays around in Tests, “ When I first started playing against Australia, the guys were the toughest team to play against because of their personalities. They were guys that competed by being verbal,” du Plessis said. “If you look at the Australian team now, their personalities have changed. They don’t have those aggressive guys that are at you the whole day, swearing the whole day. We play a similar brand of cricket now. We are very competitive but we respect each others personal space.”
The ODI series also saw some banter between each other with one on Port Elizabeth where Matthew Wade ran into Tabraiz Shamsi during a single and words were exchanged, while Imran Tahir laid into David Warner in Cape Town for reasons unknown to everyone. Tahir is not part of the Test squad but Shamsi is making his Test debut and has answered du Plessis’ call to boss the opposition with body language. Du Plessis wants South Africa to carry the ODI momentum in Tests as well especially with some ODI players present in the Test squad that includes Hashim Amla, Quinton de Kock and JP Duminy. ALSO READ: AB de Villiers accuses Australia of worst sledging during South Africa tour 2014
Du Plessis further added, “Confidence definitely plays a role. The most important thing for me is that the players are in form. No matter what the format, if you are in form you feel confident and that is something amazing to take over to Australia.” Du Plessis spoke about the expectations from the upcoming Test series, “People’s expectation will be of us going there and dominating Australia again but that’s not the case. We’ve had an amazing series, which has been the highlight of a lot of our careers, but we go to Australia on a blank slate,” he said. “The guys are confident but it’s not just going in guns blazing and thinking we can dominate them. We will have to earn that right again.”
