Brad Morgan
30 October 2007
There's a saying that goes, "It is not what you say, but the manner in which you say it that matters".
This was true of the performance of the South African national cricket team as they staged a stirring fightback to defeat Pakistan in the fifth and final one-day international in Lahore on Monday, thus securing a rare double of test and one-day series wins in Pakistan.
The Proteas' win also ensured that they would not miss out on the celebrations at home following the recent triumphs of the country's rugby and soccer teams, with the Springboks winning the 2007 World Cup in France and Bafana Bafana lifting the 2007 Cosafa Cup.
An all-too-often used refrain of "chokers" was heard in some quarters after the Proteas bowed out of the Twenty20 World Championships in disappointing fashion to India, and a two-month tour of Pakistan was hardly an easy recipe for getting matters back on a winning track.
However, some record-breaking and game-changing performances helped SA overcome the notoriously difficult challenge of winning in Asia.
A crucial weapon
The test series was first up for the Proteas, and South Africa had a crucial weapon they controversially did not have in the Twenty20 World Championships at their disposal: Jacques Kallis. His response to being snubbed by the selectors was brilliant and decisive.
In the first test, Kallis posted scores of 155 and 100 not out as SA recorded a convincing 160-run victory.
His return was the difference between the teams, and the man of the match award was just reward for an outstanding performance by an outstanding cricketer as he became only the fourth South African to score centuries in both innings of a test match, following Alan Melville and Bruce Mitchell in 1947, and Gary Kirsten in 1994.
Wicket-keeping world record
However, he was not alone when it came to record-setting
performances. Wicketkeeper Mark Boucher, when he stumped Umar Gul on the third day of the test, moved to the top of the list for dismissals by a wicketkeeper, surpassing the previous record of 395 dismissals held by Australia's Ian Healy.
Boucher reached the milestone mark in his 103rd test, which was 16 matches less than it took Healy to compile his record. In his typically understated manner, he remarked afterwards: "If you play enough matches, there will be plenty of records to break."
There were a number of other things to like about the Proteas' victory: left-arm spinner Paul Harris excelled, picking up seven wickets in the match, including a five-for in the first innings, while Dale Steyn, bowling on a wicket that wasn't very helpful to the fast bowlers, knocked over 5 for 56 in Pakistan's second innings to bowl South Africa to victory.
A long search
While SA has produced plenty of good pace bowlers in recent years, good spinners
have been a rarity, but Harris' strong showing – hauls of 5 for 73 in 36 overs and 2 for 58 in 30 overs – suggested that, after a long search, the Proteas might have found a spin bowler to be reckoned with.
In the second test, Graeme Smith's men took a commanding 151-run lead on the first innings and then set the Pakistanis a huge victory target. Ultimately, the match petered out into a draw, giving South Africa a deserved series victory.
Kallis, again, was immense. He scored 59 in the first innings and followed that up with an undefeated 107 in his second visit to the crease. That meant he had scored 421 runs in the series, with three centuries and one fifty in four innings, at the staggering average of 210.5.
He was once more named man of the match and was an easy choice for man of the series.
Harris' emergence
Apart from Kallis' dazzling form with the bat, the biggest plus for South Africa in the series was the emergence of
Harris. He led the Proteas in wickets taken, bowling average, and economy rate. In fact, he led both teams in those categories.
Playing in his first series abroad, against batsmen comfortable facing spin, and playing on unfamiliar pitches, he rose to the occasion and, importantly, displayed the kind of tough character that is needed to excel in the pressure environment that is test cricket played over five long days.
However, Harris was not retained for the five-match one-day series that followed the tests, along with Steyn, Ashwell Prince, and Hashim Amla. In their places, Justin Kemp, Johan Botha, Charl Langeveldt, and Albie Morkel were called up.
Good start to ODI series
The ODI series started well for South Africa as Herschelle Gibbs and AB de Villiers struck centuries in the opening match to help the team to a 45-run victory.
Pakistan responded by preparing slower pitches, more suited to a spin bowling attack, and they adjusted to the conditions better than the Proteas as they levelled the series with a 25-run win in the second ODI.
A sub-standard batting performance saw the Pakistanis take a 2-1 series lead, with only two matches to play, after a six-wicket win in the third ODI in Faisalabad.
Make-or-break
That meant the remaining games had become make-or-break for Graeme Smith and company; victories in both contests would result in a series victory. Anything less would mean a series loss.
A decision to use Shaun Pollock as a pinch-hitter in the fourth ODI, coming in first wicket down, paid big dividends for South Africa as he turned in a man of the match winning performance to guide the Proteas to a dominating victory.
Victory, by seven wickets, was achieved with 12.3 overs in hand as Pollock lashed 90 off only 84 deliveries, and Smith weighed-in with 81 off 103.
With the series tied at two-all, the fifth limited-overs international had become, in effect, a winner-takes-all clash.
One ball, one down
Graeme Smith won the toss and elected to bat. It wasn't a good decision on a personal level for the captain as he was dismissed first ball of the match. Herschelle Gibbs and Jacques Kallis steadied the innings, however, before Gibbs was dismissed for 54.
JP Duminy chipped in with 44, but Kallis, who hadn't yet made his mark on the ODI series, held the innings together with a knock of 86 as South Africa totalled 233 for 9. They could well have fared better, but the final six wickets to fall went down for 39 runs in just seven overs.
Pakistan started fast in their pursuit of 234 for victory, but lost two early wickets to fall to 43 for 2 in the eighth over. The home side's two best batsmen throughout the series, Younis Khan and Mohammed Yousuf, then set about taking the game away from South Africa.
Good stand
They added 106 for the
third wicket before Younis was caught by Morkel off a slower ball by Pollock for 58. Eleven runs later, Mohammed Yousuf followed when he edged a wide first ball from Duminy and Boucher pouched the catch.
Captain Shoaib Malik and Misbah-ul-Haq took Pakistan to 199 before Morkel struck, dismissing the skipper for 23 in the 41st over.
Still, with five wickets in hand and only 35 runs required for victory off 57 balls, the scales appeared tilted in favour of the home team. It's an often-used saying, however, that cricket is a "funny" game and so it proved to be.
The dismissal of Malik brought Shahid Afridi to the crease, a big hitter and very dangerous striker of the ball. He showed off his clean-striking ability with only the third delivery he received, belting Makhaya Ntini over the midwicket boundary for six.
Good catch
Then, with the score on 209, Misbah-ul-Haq went for a big drive over the top, but he mistimed it and Duminy
raced out from cover to take a good catch over his head, just in front of an advancing Kallis, who had run in from the boundary.
With the first ball of the next over, Albie Morkel sent down an impressive Yorker, striking Sohail Tanvir a painful blow on the toe, and trapping the new man LBW with the first delivery he faced.
Suddenly a match that had appeared to be under Pakistan's control was delicately poised, with South Africa needing another three wickets to win and the Pakistanis requiring a further 25 runs.
It was noticeable, though, that the Proteas were lifted by the wicket, and they were playing with belief in their ability to win, rather than with a fear of losing.
Big wicket
Pakistan added a further 10 runs before Afridi went for a trademark big blast over the top. His shot skewed off the bat, behind square on the off, and towards the boundary.
It looked as if the ball would fall safely, but AB de Villiers sprinted after after it and with a superbly-timed effort grabbed a fantastic catch at full speed over his shoulder. The Proteas celebrated a remarkable piece of fielding.
Then, with the second ball of the next over, Morkel got Iftikhar Anjum to nibble at an away-swinger and wicketkeeper Boucher took a great catch low to his right to reduce Pakistan to 219 for 9.
The expressions on the faces of the respective coaches, Mickey Arthur and Geoff Lawson, told a story. Arthur's eyes were lit up with excitement and a smile played on his lips as he took in the contest, while Lawson could be seen shaking his head, a look of disbelief playing across his features.
Last batsman
Pakistan's last batsman, Shoaib Akhtar, who had captured 4 for 43 with the ball, came to the wicket.
Morkel bowled and Akhtar immediately went for an all-or-nothing drive over the top. The ball spiralled out to Andre Nel near the boundary, square on the off, and he safely claimed the catch to secure a stunning 14-run victory for South Africa, helping Morkel achieve career-best figures of 4 for 44.
It set off wild celebrations among the visiting players and in the South African change room, as the Proteas recorded a dramatic series victory.
Ntini, after a second four-wicket haul in the ODI series, was named man of the match, while Kallis won a car after being named the oustanding player of both the test and one-day series.
Notable success
A beaming Graeme Smith took possession of the huge series trophy and shared it with his teammates, as the Proteas joined Rugby World Cup winners, the Springboks, and Cosafa Castle Cup winners, Bafana Bafana, in achieving notable recent successes on the world sporting stage.
The outstanding victories by South Africa's three major sporting teams are, indeed, a good recipe to lift the mood of the nation.
For the cricketers, their strong performances and winning results were exactly what was needed after the disappointment of the team's exit from the Twenty20 World Championships, and it leaves the players in a confident mood for upcoming series at home against New Zealand and the West Indies.
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