We have asked for pace and bounce in Centurion: Faf du Plessis

Team India’s worst nightmares could come true if the words of South African skipper Faf du Plessis are to be believed. On the eve of the second Test at Centurion, the South African captain has remarked that the hosts have asked for a track full of pace and bounce. Well, this will not come as a surprise to the Indian since they have been expecting something on the similar lines after the show down in Cape Town.

Back there, the visitors came very close to winning the game but crashed like ten pins at the very last moment. They would hope for a better turnaround this time now. Albeit happy with the preparations, Faf du Plessis had a bit of concerns after looking at the Centurion track.

Du Plessis, as per the quotes in Timeslive, looked worried after seeing brown grass on the surface. The brown grass implies that there could be assistance for the spinners. The South African captain remarked that the Centurion wicket has not been a spin friendly and he would be surprised if that brown grass comes in to the picture on the match day.

“Generally‚ Centurion does not spin that much but there is a thick layer of brown grass on it and it is not something that we are used to here. For us‚ at the moment it is unknown and we will see how it plays over the next five days. Conditions that we like are when we get the ball that spins as little as possible. The wicket looks a bit browner than I thought. What I got from the groundsman is that the grass on the wicket has been burned from the heat over the last week‚ because it was too hot,” quoted Faf du Plessis.

“We have asked for pace and bounce and hopefully that is what we will get. For me‚ the key thing is pace and bounce and if there was a little bit of grass it would be fine‚ but we back ourselves. I expect a good cricket wicket with a good of pace and bounce. In the previous game pace took them out of their comfort zones – this time it will be about the same lines and we must make sure that we have bowlers who can do that,” he added.

On the Indian team

Commenting on the opposition, team India, Faf du Plessis expressed great respect for the Virat Kohli-led side. He cited that the Indian team was very competitive in Cape Town. He remarked that the Indian side was in the driver’s seat for most part of the match. The only place where they faltered in the game was in the first innings where they scored fewer runs than the South African side. He expects a good show down in Centurion now.

“I think at times they played very good cricket in that first test. I said that match was one of the best I played in because there were so many ups and downs for both teams. India were in the game for 90% of the match. I expect them to take positives out of that game,” said the South African captain.

“The only part where we were a little better than them was that we got a few more runs in the first innings. I expect another huge performance from them. For us is to make sure that we don’t rely on a 1-0 lead‚ because if you do that against India they will pounce,” du Plessis conceded further.

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