Veterans out to fill in gaps

Jacques Kallis has his sights set firmly on a series win over England this summer

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Jacques Kallis and Mark Boucher must beat England this summer to avoid leaving a hole in their proud Test cricket CVs.

The two South African thirtysomethings know they may have only more chance to win a Test series in this country - and after their near misses in 1998 and 2003 they are determined to set the record straight.

South Africa have twice faltered at the final hurdle - to lose 2-1 a decade ago, and draw 2-2 on their last tour - and both Kallis and Boucher today made no secret of their personal need to do the job properly this time.

“There are three things I really want to achieve,” said Kallis. “One is beating England in England, a second is beating Australia, and the third is winning the World Cup.”

The lynchpin batsman and reliable pace bowler will be at least 36 by the time South Africa have their next Test tour here, while wicketkeeper Boucher will be 35.

“We’ve come close in the past and made some silly mistakes at times when we shouldn’t have,” Kallis recalled at Lord’s, where South Africa will tomorrow step up their preparations for Thursday’s first Test.

“This time we hope we can learn from those mistakes and get the foot all the way in through the door, not just half way - and make sure we play those big moments better than England.

“There were key moments in that Oval Test (in 2003) when we didn’t play well and gave the initiative of the game away.”

South Africa made 484 in their first innings in that match, only to lose by nine wickets after Marcus Trescothick replied with a double-century.

But they have won three Tests out of three at Lord’s since they were readmitted to international cricket, and Kallis is confident they will at least be a match for their opponents in what is likely to be a very tight series.

Mark Boucher, like team-mate Kallis, has never tasted Test series success in England

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“We’re probably just favourites, although England being at home maybe makes it pretty much even,” the all-rounder added.

“We’ve worked hard on our game. Everything we’ve done in the last year has been towards this series and the Australian one still to come.”

Kallis and Boucher appear to agree on many things, and another one is the importance to England of South Africa-born batsman Kevin Pietersen.

“I think they’ll want to bat around Kevin, so if we can knock him over early that could get us a long way into getting through their top order,” Kallis suggests.

“He is obviously a key batsman who has done well in these conditions. The wickets are quite slow here, and that does suit the way he bats.

“He’s a world-class player who’s proven it over the last few years, so we’ll have to be on top of our game against him. It will be important that we try and attack him early and get him out early.”

Like Kallis, Boucher is full of admiration for Pietersen’s cricketing ability - and insists South Africa’s only focus this summer will be to get him out, rather than waste time on verbal exchanges.

“I respect Kevin as a person and what he’s been through,” Boucher said of a player who was disenchanted with South Africa’s positive discrimination racial quota policy and moved away to try and further his career, “I take my hat off to him, and he’s a great player,” he added.

“We see him as England’s best batter. But come game time, it’s about South Africa v England, and we’ve got to try and get him out.

“It’s about bat and ball, so we hope to put other issues behind him.

“We can have a few words to many players around the world - just because it’s Kevin, it doesn’t make any difference to us. We just want to get an English batter out.”