Smith shrugs off nine-month hiatus

Graeme Smith insists his side are prepared for the Test series with England, despite South Africa losing their number one Test ranking spot and suffering defeat to Australia earlier this year

South Africa captain Graeme Smith discounts the suggestion his team may be ‘under-cooked’ against England in Centurion, after a nine-month gap since their last Test match.

Smith’s team have not played five-day cricket since their consolation March victory against Australia at Cape Town - and thanks to that inactivity, have lost their number one ranking to India.

South Africa’s chosen method of preparation to face mid-ranking England, who recently beat them in a one-day international series, was a training camp in Potchefstroom.

Smith is confident the upshot, going into a first match of four at Centurion tomorrow, is that his team are as ready as they can be.

“I know it’s been a lengthy period since our last Test match, but our squad is a very mature one,” he said.

“It’s had a lot of success, and each guy knows what he needs to do to be successful.

“We’ve prepared really well - and it’s been a good, calm focus with intensity around our training sessions.

“It’s always difficult to say where you are if you haven’t played a Test match for a long time. But I think we’re ready.”

The repercussions of a false start hardly need to be spelled out to Smith.

“It’s up to us to come out and make that first day count,” he added.

Smith has no qualms about his team’s ability to click into gear at the right time but concedes there is something unique about the demands of Test cricket.

“I wouldn’t say under-cooked is the right word. We’ve played enough cricket, had enough training and enough match time,” he said.

“It is more the long haul of a Test match, being able to handle pressure for long periods and sustain performances for long periods.”

Smith is adamant his side will not be roughed up due to lack of preparation and training ahead of the first Test

Somewhere in that time frame, Smith is hoping his team can make sure they do not make it easy for Kevin Pietersen to re-establish himself at the highest level - in his first Test since four months out with an Achilles injury.

Pietersen’s task is complicated by a return to his native country, where he has not always had the kindest receptions from home crowds.

Smith, meanwhile, is warning Pietersen his former countrymen have worked out some new tactics for bowling at him.

“We’d like to make it a major test for him. That is our challenge as a team,” he said.

“We want to put all England batters under pressure, and he’s a key figure in that line-up. We’ve worked on a few interesting game-plans to him.

“Since injury, he’s searching for a bit of confidence - and we hope we can keep him under that pressure he’s had on the tour so far.”

South Africa know they will have to adapt to account for all-rounder Jacques Kallis’ inability to bowl yet as he recovers from a broken rib - and Smith has issued an appropriate rallying call.

“We have some quality bowlers who can produce the results, but we’re not going to have the luxury of Jacques (as a bowler) - so the responsibility shifts to all other places,” he said.

“Players know they’re going to have to take on a little bit more.”

There will be no hiding place, Smith contends, against opponents South Africa beat in England last year - but whom he clearly respects.

“I haven’t played a Test series against England that hasn’t been tough,” he said.

“Every series I’ve played against England has been hard-fought, and have always come down to little moments within each game.”

South Africa’s knockout in the Champions Trophy, followed by ODI series defeat by England, have left South Africa with the added motivation of revenge.

Smith is confident his team have what it takes anyway.

“We’ve had the edge of late,” he points out. “We played the better cricket in the last series in England and deserved our victory there.”