South Africa v India: Boxing Day Test Preview

[00:00:00] Hello and welcome to this week's episode of the Edges and Sliders Cricket Podcast.

[00:00:14] I'm your host Ashwin.

[00:00:15] I'm joined by DJ.

[00:00:17] Let me start by quickly preemptively apologizing for audio quality this week.

[00:00:21] I am on some travels for the holidays, but in time with family, so I was not able to

[00:00:26] move around with my podcast mic. Yes, women have just won their second test match in a row. How incredible is that? I mean, first to England now Australia. I think it's our first ever win against the Australian women's side. So a huge congratulations. How are you feeling? I know you've been keeping up with a lot of the women's figures. Yeah, it's been fantastic. 11 test matches, 11 tries they've had and they haven't managed to do it.

[00:01:42] And this time they managed to do it.

[00:01:44] I think the first time since 1977 I read somewhere that India has beaten Australia. There's lots of like, Beth Mooney, but there was some brain fade moments as well. Did you see the run out from short length? I did, absolutely unbelievable. I'm surprised there was no warding given and you know, just, sorry, it's too soon. It's probably too soon. But yeah, incredible. Extraordinary. But also, but also a moment of genius in the field, right?

[00:03:00] Your field on field of analysis is important.

[00:03:03] Yeah, but what if Beth Mooney think that change

[00:03:04] was just having a net or like what? It is my favorite format of the game and I can't wait to get into it with you. And we are about to talk about the men's side, but the only unconquered frontier. And if you're saying India hasn't beaten Australia on the women's side since the 70s, India has not beaten South Africa in the men's side ever in a test series and in South Africa.

[00:04:23] And that is going to be a tremendous challenge. I mean, it's just it doesn't believe some of the numbers are unbelievable. How did you feel? So let's just start with the guy who was least interested in the auction got closest to the top pick because Pat comments went for 20.5 crores, which at the time was a record, right? But your pick, Hasaranga, who you thought would go for the top money, he was probably

[00:05:42] the best pick of the auction a weird pick though, man. Like I get why KKR went off. I think it's the weirdest thing. But yeah, I get why KKR went after him and he's a, let's say he's a, he's a two Mumbai has been at the same franchise or so long and stuff. But man, that seems wild. But anyway. Yeah. Also, Travis Head, which is Varun speak for the top pick where he went for six.

[00:08:22] Yeah.

[00:08:23] Another spinning, spinning all round, I guess.

[00:08:25] Yeah. He's a fast-rolling all-rounder at Paddit TU2. So you're comparing Chardul with a guy who's won the... I'm not, I'm asking if you are. Captain the team to Ash's equaling. I'm asking if you are, right? Won the World Test Championship final. And it's, I don't know, I can't remember whether he was part of the T20 World Cup,

[00:09:41] when he probably was, wasn't he?

[00:09:43] So you're comparing that guy to Chardul Taz.

[00:09:45] I'm just asking if you are, it was a question.

[00:09:47] I'm not, I think A.B. de Villiers came out saying that he felt that this guy was a real serious talent for the future and he'd bold at him and he was in A.B.'s face and it takes

[00:11:03] to take something to get into A.B. de Villiers won't talk about all of them. One, Samir Rhejvi, who went to CSK picked up 8.4 and two, Kumar Koshagra, who went to Delhi picked up 7.2.

[00:12:21] K squared.

[00:12:21] Okay.

[00:12:22] Where we have Christian have K2 or K squared on this, uh, on this show.

[00:12:27] But yeah, let's talk about the A phenomenon.

[00:12:29] Right.

[00:13:26] lot and Delhi, I'm not sure, I think we had a fairly mediocre auction. Okay, okay, so I'm not got a lot of hope for the Delhi capitals this year. Unfortunately, I'm saying something

[00:13:32] dramatic happened in the post trade window, which I know Varun and you think that Roja

[00:13:36] Sharma is moving to Delhi for whatever you do. Man, we have to have hope. If you don't have

[00:13:40] hope, there's a point. You absolutely need help waited how long has it been in the show since we started? 14 minutes since we spoke about Boney. That's pretty good. I'll give you a great photo. I think you're starting to get better. The longer he stays, the easier they get, we're starting to get better. So that's probably a good new record. Congratulations to all the players who got picked up on the auctions.

[00:15:02] Congratulations to all the fans who were excited by the pickups.

[00:15:05] It's been a pretty interesting auction. to South Africa return home for personal reasons. And is not yet back in South Africa, I believe, but the current headlines are still saying he's expected to be back in time for the boxing test. But it is after lunch on the 24th, two days out, he didn't get to play the interest squad red ball warm-up match. With the side, what do you think? Do you think we're going to see a new number

[00:16:23] four for India? Or do you think we're not going to be back in time?

[00:17:24] But who opened the batting? Yes, yes, we opened the batting.

[00:17:25] Yeah, and the thing is it is different.

[00:17:27] It for sure is different, but I also see the problem is I don't even remember

[00:17:30] who opened the batting.

[00:17:31] I remember yes, we opened the batting in the T20 game and I have.

[00:17:34] Yeah, so the only I was in that shouldn't put in that right.

[00:17:38] And then Samson Bennett.

[00:17:39] So he got something better.

[00:17:41] Did I looked insane by the way in that one game that he played?

[00:17:45] Yeah, he left. So you've been living under a rock. I've been so nervous. But you did give me the heart attack and I'm like, yeah, and now it's resolved. So it's perfect.

[00:19:00] All right. So no more fake news. No more. It was absolutely real days. He did leave and he was expected to be back and he, right? So let's go through the... So this is the first series in the post-Puraneera. Post-Puraneera. Sounds weird. Post-Puraneera. So in the Naira, right? Naira, though. Naira, though. It's a... We should not be advertising writers or anything.

[00:20:20] So who are we opening with?

[00:20:22] Rohit is going to open?

[00:20:23] So let's think about this, right? theory, he should be pretty good on South African tracks as well. He hasn't really lit this series up, the White Ball series up. And he struggled a little bit. There was one where he reviewed where he shouldn't have that the next one he didn't review when he should have. So he struggled a little bit. But I almost think that he should bat three

[00:21:42] and we should give him a bit of a rope at three because it's educated. They're the same for me, clearly. And this is the scene, remember, that of Coley's downfall as a captain. This is the last series that he captained in Test cricket. They were up 1-0, they'd won the first Test match, they lost the next two. Dean Algar, Bavuma, Keegan Peterson. So I have pretty dire memories of the start of 2002, actually.

[00:23:02] And then Coley was sacked as Test captain.

[00:23:06] And I again lost a bit of interest in Test cricket for a while. is 49.3. His average in South Africa is 51.3. He has two hundreds and three half centuries in 14 innings. So it's not bad. Okay, then I misspoke. No, no, it's not 50 plus is great white ball. I think it'll be very interesting. But to me, if you can bet with either Shreya or KL at six, you're giving us some options. To me, actually, Shreya is a non-negotiable. And I might be a famous last words. really good in, in test cricket ever since he made his way back into the team in the England series in 2021. And he's got hundreds and he did well as an opener, but this is a different point, right? Like he's going to be batting in the middle order. Now the other option is Ishaan Kishan, who was, he's the

[00:27:02] incumbent. Now, for me, that is going to be the trial by fire. So I hope Ayur is in the nets practicing his back foot plate. And then Rahul is the natural choice to take the gloves, right? I don't think Bharat is a long term option. Okay, so you are sort of in agreement with me, Anshayas and Rahul.

[00:28:20] Yes, we are. But I would bet Rahul had five in session.

[00:28:22] Sure, yeah, yeah. And then you walk into because you need to pick up the fourth quick-pointing option in the absence of a good-pointing all-arounder. So what do you do for your two remaining balls? Sir, I would go with a Prasad-Krishna.

[00:29:43] Yeah. fourth seeming seamar, right? And that is where we fall short of this. So we will play shardal again. I can't see this management changing this formula that they have. I can't see Ashwin walking into this side in South Africa, alongside Jadeja. We will just not do that. But I HR who's good enough to bat at seven, you don't even need to be a great batter. I think if you're a Seamer who can bat at a little bit at eight, you know, somebody charged with a ask, but not charged on, you would walk in with the side. You would just absolutely walk in the side. All right.

[00:32:20] So the only guy left then is Mukesh Kumar.

[00:32:22] Yeah.

[00:32:23] So for me, actually, I don't, I think, Momrasaraj and Sharadul at eight are confirmed.

[00:32:27] I think they will give Mukesh a serious look. some of the comments that are coming in that are relevant. introspects as we're struggling to both sides out in the fourth innings, that'll be tested. And Rahul's real test will probably be keeping in India. He can manage overseas potentially, which is interesting, which makes sense on spin. And yeah, lots of great other comments to then shared early on for me.

[00:33:40] If the bats might try to get in and look to defend or leave the new wall,

[00:33:43] you're allowing rubbish to settle and play cricket and win and come back. Listen, one means you want to test and drew the series and shared puts. So I mean, that's phenomenal. But we want to test every time we've gone there for the last few times, other than I think in 2014, where they nearly chased 450 year job work. But we want to test Raoul Dravad actually captain the time we won the first test.

[00:35:03] Rishant was a bull.

[00:35:04] If you remember 2006, your memory is unreal.