India and South Africa will square off in a two-Test series, starting November 14 in Kolkata.
India and South Africa are all set to square off in a two-match Test series, starting on November 14 at the iconic Eden Gardens in Kolkata. The second Test is slated to be held in Guwahati’s Barsapara Cricket Stadium from November 22-26.
It will undoubtedly be a tough challenge for the defending WTC champions, who have not won a Test series in India since 2000 while their last Test victory on Indian soil came back in 2010.
Ahead of the series opener, however, Proteas spinner Keshav Maharaj said that there's a "real hunger and desire" to put an end to the drought while also describing the India tour as one of their toughest.
"There's a real hunger and desire within the camp to beat India in India. It's probably one of the toughest tours, if not the toughest in the Proteas calendar, for the various generations that have come (here). We feel like it's one of our biggest tests. And it will be a wonderful opportunity to grade ourselves, to see how far we've come slowly,” Maharaj said, as quoted by PTI.
"We have started to conquer other parts of the subcontinent. And I feel like this is one assignment that we really, really want to take,” he added.
South Africa are coming into the series on the back of a 1-1 draw in Pakistan, where their spinners ruled the roost on turning tracks. But Maharaj doesn’t think the curators in India will serve spin-friendly pitches.
"I don't think it will be as spin-friendly as we experienced in Pakistan. I think it will be good wickets that will deteriorate as the game goes on. So, probably, more of your traditional Test wickets from what we see," said left-arm spinner.
"I think if you watched a bit of the West Indies series, it was good wickets that went almost to day four and five. So, I do believe that the sort of narrative is changing in terms of getting wickets.
"They (India) are a wonderful team and they've come a long way, especially with the transition that they have had. I would think that they want to go with good cricket wickets, just judging from the West Indies series."
Maharaj also said they will carry a bit of momentum from Pakistan into the series against India.
"We are carrying a bit of momentum from Pakistan in that second Test, (where) we showed that regardless of the toss, we're still going to fight and try to force the result in our way.
"I think there's a real precision about how we've gone about our business throughout this cycle so far, and in the previous cycle," he remarked.
(With PTI Inputs)