South Africa head coach Shukri Conrad was filled with confidence as his key fast bowlers Kagiso Rabada and Lungi Ngidi returned to practice before the 'Boxing Day' Test against India, starting on Tuesday, December 26, in Centurion.
Notably, Rabada was rested for the limited-overs series against Team India due to a heel niggle, and Ngidi had withdrawn due to a left ankle injury during the T20Is.
The Supersport Park's track is favorable for pacers, and Conrad is counting on Rabada and Ngidi, his potent weapons, to perform at their best in the upcoming opening Test of the two-match Test series against the Rohit Sharma-led Indian cricket team.
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Shukri Conrad said ahead of the first Test: “They will be fresh and firing (Rabada and Ngidi). I am always a firm believer in freshness. It would have been ideal had they got some mileage in the legs by playing first-class matches but that's life. You have got to find a way.”
He added, “But I am not bothered that they will be undercooked for the game. KG (Rabada) and Lungi are still in the 15-member squad and available for selection. We will make that decision tomorrow. Hopefully, tomorrow morning we will have a full squad of 15 to select from.”
Team India hasn’t won a Test series in South Africa and the Proteas coach said that they would take advantage of this.
He noted: “I would be lying if I said we have not taken cognizance of that. We know what history tells us. If it was ever possible to make the series ever bigger then that makes it even bigger that India have never won a Test series here.”
The coach continued, “We certainly want to hold that proud record and make sure it doesn't happen. India is the biggest series that we are going to play this year. It has been dubbed as the final frontier back in India and we are going to do our best to make sure that they don't conquer the final frontier.”
Praising India’s batting mainstay Virat Kohli, Conrad said: “If there are top five in world cricket at the moment then Virat Kohli sits at number one. That goes without saying that Virat is going to be a prized wicket wherever he plays in the world. He will be a prized wicket even when he is 50.”
He signed off by saying, “India has got a quality batting lineup. Rohit Sharma, the young Shubman Gill, and there is quality bursting through but we have a quality bowling lineup.”
(With PTI/ANI Inputs)
