Clash of the Titans

South Africans are here again; hungry and looking forward to taking back something most experts believe is rightfully theirs - the No. 1 spot in Test Cricket.
They have one of the best fast bowling attack and have a smart spinner in Botha who can be handy in the Indian conditions. Their Batsmen have been doing well and have scored heavily in the recent Test series with England. The fielding as usual is top class and would not give an inch to the opposition.
But what goes for them the most is their past record in India. The last time they were here they got caught in the Sehwag Thunderstorm but managed to win the next test easily demolishing the famed Indian batting line up. India managed to win the deciding test by preparing a turner but could not convince anyone of their batting against quality bowling.

However India has done well for some time now in Test cricket and the batsmen look in decent form if not great form.The likes of Virendra Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir and Mahendra Singh Dhoni are excellent strokemakers and the master is there to provide solidity to the middle order. Rahul's absence may not have much impact if the openers do well. However the choice of the No 3 Bat would be interesting to see.
The bowling looks better with Zaheer in and new spinners getting a look. However, it is Harbhajan's form that is worrying. He has not performed well and clearly is low on confidence. He has to do better or make room for someone fresh.
India's secret weapon can be Mithun who has done really well in his brief career. He almost won the game for Karnataka in the Ranji Finals.

Last but not the least Indian fielding, which has hit an all time low especially catching, has to be solid. Catches have to be taken and singles stopped to prevent the rotation of strike.

The South Africans are without a coach and India has a South African coach!!

I am keeping my fingers crossed and hoping that India wins and wins on good sporting wickets which last the distance. Let there be some good cricket and the best team will win.