Former Proteas batsman Daryll Cullinan reckons Virat Kohli & Co should be competitive with the bat if they fancy their chances of winning Test series
India opener Murali Vijay bats on Day One of the first Test against South Africa in Cape Town. Pic/AFP
Former South Africa batsman Daryll Cullinan has made the equation for Virat Kohli-led Team India pretty simple if the visitors want to bag their maiden Test series win. It's going to be a mountain to climb for the visitors if they want pull off a heist in the second Test today at Centurion especially with the poor record at the venue by teams from sub-continent, including India, where they have suffered innings defeat.
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"The key to any side coming to South Africa, where India have struggled in the past, is to have batters to get through the new ball. No doubt, they can bowl South Africa out, we saw it in Cape Town, but to win this series, you need to be more competitive with the bat. "They need good starts and bigger runs on the board. Without the runs, they cannot do it," Cullinan, who was the centrepiece of the Proteas' batting in the mid 1990s, told mid-day yesterday.
With another lively pitch expected, the scenario looks to get all the more tougher with rain forecast as well, but Team India have the ammunition and are a much balanced side to the teams Cullinan faced in the 1990s. "The Indian team I played against had their super stars for sure like this team has. On the bowling front, this side has a lot to offer in terms of an all-round performance. They don't have a Kumble in this attack although R Ashwin is not a bad spinner. They have more pace options. They have got a good batting depth. This team definitely covers all options better than the Indian sides from the past," Cullinan, an expert panellist on ESPNCricinfo, added.
Daryll Cullinan
The veteran Protea was pleased to see a youngster like Hardik Pandya perform exceptionally well in all the three departments. "If you look at the list of pace bowlers who were all-rounders that India had, it was a long time ago. Perhaps, Kapil Dev and may be Manoj Prabhakar. "A quality all-rounder gets that balance right for the team. I saw enough of Hardik in Cape Town. He's a smart cricketer and he can play as an all-rounder in this Indian side. South Africa may bowl consistently to him and treat him more like a top order batsman.
"They made the mistake of trying to bowl him out of the attack, but it would be wonderful for India if he comes through as a quality Test all-rounder because that's something they desperately need for sure," said Cullinan, who admitted Dale Steyn's absence will hurt skipper Faf du Plessis. He, however, reckoned that South Africa still possess a ravenous bowling attack. Asked about his prediction for the series, Cullinan said: "If India win, I wouldn't be surprised, but I think South Africa will win the series."
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