Well the news out of South Africa is pleasing. A Test Match that is a contest between bat and ball. Australia are probably in the best position but this is becuase the fought hard and grafted their innings. It is not because the coin fell their way and they got to bat on a flat road of a pitch! There was life there for the bowlers and when they bent their backs there was enough there to cause some serious trouble for the batsmen, just check out the vision of Simons spitting blood from wounds recieved through the grill of his helmet.
Baggy Green put it this way:
The pitch is the second of the series that has made batting difficult and Ponting sweated over his runs in the hope the surface would settle. Countering periods of inconsistent bounce and hints of movement, no batsmen looked fluent until Martyn, who entered with three beautiful boundaries - a back-foot force, a square drive and a superb ease through cover - and finished with a crisp 57. Even he was hit on the shoulder failing to understand the bounce of a Ntini short ball - his most damaging and surprising delivery was still to come - and another from Kallis forced a frightened fend to safety.
So well done to the grounds staff at Durban have done well the game is set as good test cricket should be. Day one there was life, batting will get simpler and then the pitch will start to wearout. With Warne in the side Australia will want to capitalise on the good start and then put some preasure on in the field. If they can hold their catches then that should happen.
So it all goes to show that 434 to lose a one day game does not make for great cricket! great Cricket is where bat and ball have to work hard at their game to gain assendancy.
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