IND vs SA Tests: Shukri Conrad expresses confidence in South Africa's spinners

Shukri Conrad (Pic: File Pic)

Ahead of the two-match Test series against Team India, South Africa's head coach Shukri Conrad has expressed confidence in his spinners by saying that the team is confident of scripting history.

"Having good spinners in your team, does that add spice to the overall contest? Yes, I think it gives us a lot of confidence," Conrad said during a press conference.

"Not saying that we didn't have good spinners in the past, but we certainly think we've got a better pack of spinners now in Keshav, Simon and Sen. It gives us a lot of confidence that if the conditions are (conducive) we feel that we've got the armoury to obviously challenge India in that respect as well. We're quietly confident that we can make history of our own here in Eden Gardens and in India," he added.

The head coach also compared the first Test match with the World Test Championship (WTC) final against Australia, which the Proteas won.

"Yes, we had the final against Australia that we won which was massive. I compare this series, and this match, to that final," said the 58-year-old former cricketer.

Conrad also feels that playing against India anywhere in the world is a tough challenge. According to him, the quality of the Pakistan and Indian team cannot be compared.

"Look India, tough challenge anyway in the world and when you come to an iconic venue like Eden Gardens, it just makes it even tougher. I don't think you can compare the quality of the sides we played against (Pakistan) to India and this will be our biggest challenge. Certainly in my 20th match, I don't think there's been a bigger challenge (than this)," he said.

The first Test match is scheduled to be played at the Eden Gardens from November 14, followed by the second game from November 22 at the Assam Cricket Association Stadium in Guwahati.

After the conclusion of the Test series, both teams will engage in white-ball series, including three ODIs and five T20Is.

IND vs SA Tests: Full Squads

India: Shubman Gill (C), Rishabh Pant (WK) (VC), Dhruv Jurel, Ravindra Jadeja, Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Sai Sudharsan, Devdutt Padikkal, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Axar Patel, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Mohammed Siraj, Akash Deep.

South Africa: Temba Bavuma (C), Zubayr Hamza, Simon Harmer, Marco Jansen, Corbin Bosch, Dewald Brevis, Tony de Zorzi, Senuran Muthusamy, Keshav Maharaj, Aiden Markram, Wiaan Mulder, Ryan Rickelton (WK), Tristan Stubbs, Kyle Verreynne (WK).

(With PTI Inputs)