A pitch reputed to offer carry and bounce and big square boundaries comprise the regular challenge at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. Beyond that, the Indians suffer the weight of history in not having beaten South Africa ever in the World Cup. This is quite the obverse of the Pakistan clash, which ended sensationally in a sixth consecutive triumph for India over the arch foes. India have played the Proteas three times, batting first on all occasions, and still losing every time, from Adelaide Oval in 1992 through Hove in 1999 in England to Nagpur in India in 2011.
South Africa found the man for the hour each time in those meetings, starting with Peter Kirsten who took a blinder at cover to catch a Srikkanth drive that looked a six the moment it met the bat. In a shortened game, India would have been betting on an electric start, but one which did not come in what was a very poor World Cup. Kirsten led the charge with an 84 despite saying he was not suited to opening the innings in limited-overs cricket after Azhar and Kapil had sparkled with the bat to see India put up 180 on the board in 30 overs.
At Hove, it was that ‘old reliable’ Jacques Kallis who guided the chasers to a win after they began poorly. This was at a time when India had a pace and seam attack spearheaded by Srinath and Venkatesh Prasad. If there was any doubt about the results in the end overs, Lance Klusener settled it with three fours off four balls. This was India’s first game and they never quite recovered from there although they did score an impressive win over Pakistan later.
“You don’t play for the crowd, you play for the country,” was how Dhoni chastised his batsmen after they managed to self-destruct from 267 for 1 in the 40th over to be all out for 296 on the plumb pitch of Nagpur’s gleaming new stadium. The chase was marshalled by Kallis and de Villiers and in a sensational final over in which the ball was given to Asish Nehra rather than Harbhajan Singh, Robin Peterson took the Proteas home with a couple of lusty blows for four and six off the first two balls when 13 were needed.
Team India would like to believe history has no meaning and that each match is a separate entity when it takes on South Africa in MCG on Sunday. Having rolled off the starting blocks well enough with the win over Pakistan, the defending champions need not do things too differently, apart from having to get smarter about the running between the wickets against a superior fielding team and tempering the early approach with some caution against Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel, two of the classiest new ball bowlers in the competition.
Sunday’s challenge will be far more difficult. But India begin as the underdogs, a tag that has suited them in the past to bring off upsets to turn the form book upside down. Their pacers bowled within themselves against Pakistan and the spinners were spot on from the start. More of the same would be the formula in a game which will have a direct bearing on who will top the group. They would also do well to remember Dhoni’s comment on having to play for the country.
