Wounded Australia promise improved show

Australia will not mind having to play over five days as long as they are able to square the two-test series against South Africa. The second test match starts on Thursday at the Wanderers in Johannesburg. After an action-packed first test that saw the game see-saw within hours and wrapped up inside three days, both sides will be wary of avoiding a repeat of their colossal batting collapses.

Australia have a few changes to make and they will be hoping these changes come good. Back injury to Shaun Marsh has ruled him out of the remaining matches and David Warner has been flown in as replacement. However, Usman Khawaja, the first Muslim to represent Australia, is likely to be take Marsh’s spot in the playing eleven. Another prospective change is to award the baggy green to fast-bowler Pat Cummins, at the expense of either Peter Siddle or the usually-inconsistent Mitchell Johnson, both of whom picked up one wicket apiece in the first test.

South Africa, despite their batting succumbing miserably in the first innings at Cape Town, are likely to resist making changes. Opener Jacques Rudolph, although failed in both innings, is likely to be given an extended run on his return from exile. Graeme Smith and Hashim Amla stamped their authority with aggressive centuries and the rest of the batting order will hope to take cue from it. Vernon Philander’s impressive show on debut means the bowling unit also looks relatively stable. Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel will be keen on extracting the maximum out of the pacer-friendly pitch at the Wanderers.

The Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg is known for its pacer-friendly pitches and both the teams will be looking to make maximum use of it. If Australia need some motivation going into the match, they must remember that they have won their test match at Johannesburg each time on their four previous tours, dating back to 1997. Jacques Kallis has a strong record at the ground, being the only batsman with over 1000 test runs.

The match may witness frequent rain interruptions with short thundershowers expected through the next seven days.

Upbeat Pakistan look to extend lead

After roaring to a convincing victory in the first match, Pakistan will be keen on carrying the winning momentum in the second ODI against Sri Lanka on Monday. Sri Lanka, the World Cup finalists, though have plenty of worries going into the match, having tasted very little success in the past six months.

Pakistan could not have scripted a better performance than the show they put up on Friday. The fast bowlers started off well, maintained the pressure and eventually the spinners breathed down Sri Lanka’s batting with contained bowling and crucial wickets. Bowling will once again be the key for Pakistan, and the blend of youth and experience is allowing them to adjust into their own roles well. The variety at Misbah ul Haq’s disposal is also something any captain would cherish on the slow, low surfaces of Dubai. The bulk of the batting is yet to be tested, though half-centuries from Imran Farhat and Younis Khan should do their own confidence a lot of good plus silence their critics to some extent. The all-rounders give Pakistan some easy breathing space, with hard-hitting Abdul Razzaq coming in at number eight. But all eyes will once again be on Shahid Afridi, expectations from whom are sky high following his Man-of-the-Match performance on his comeback.

Sri Lankan dressing room presents a totally opposite scenario to that of Pakistan. Their batting woes fail to go away, and even wholesale changes to the squad from the test series brought little luck, if any. Their batsmen need to get their act right urgently, as too many batsmen threw their wickets away to soft dismissals. Failure to convert the starts into big scores has been a recurring problem for the Tigers. The bowling also looked toothless, though it can be argued that it was a result of trying too hard defending a paltry total of 131. Lasith Malinga looked off-color but such is his threat that he can come good any moment. Suranga Lakmal continues to impress and if Pakistan are complacent against him, the latter can be caught off guard against Lakmal.

The conditions will be similar to the first match played here, with warm temperatures expected throughout the day/night encounter. The captain winning the toss is likely to favor batting first. Interestingly, the team winning the toss on this ground has won only once out of six attempts.

Pakistan gear up for Lankan aggression in ODIs

After winning the three-match test series 1-0, Pakistan face Sri Lanka in the five-match one-day series starting in Dubai from Friday.

While the tests produced defensive batting reminiscent of the early 90s, the crowds and the audience alike will hope for the one-day series to yield some attacking cricket – something that has been a characteristic of the two sides, specially in the shorter versions of the game.

South Africa face Australia challenge on return to test cricket

Once the top two sides in the world, South Africa and Australia head into an unusually-short two-test series starting from Wednesday. Cape Town will present the home side its first test match since the New Year’s test against India. Australia, on the other hand, are gradually picking up under Michael Clarke, with ODI series already in the bag and having shared the T20 series.