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South Africans tip toe to Eden Gardens

Kolkata, 11 February 2010 : Back in 2008, South Africa had gone into the final Test at Kanpur leading the series 1-0, but on the much criticised Green Park wicket, India drew the series level. Going into the final Test of the current series, the newly appointed South Africa coach Corrie van Zyl hopes that it will not be a deja vu moment at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata.

A day after curator Prabir Mukherjee revealed that he had been asked to prepare a spinning track for the final Test in Kolkata, the health of the Kolkata wicket took centre stage at a press conference with the Proteas coach in Nagpur. Van Zyl believes that the pitch for the second Test will favour the Indian spinners, but he will know the exact details only once he gets to Kolkata.

"We'll see when we get there (Eden Gardens), and see for ourselves what it looks like. I do expect that it (the pitch) is going to help the Indian team. Sitting here in Nagpur, I believe it will help the Indian spinners but we need to go to Kolkata and make our own assessment," van Zyl said. When asked if the locals will be more wary of preparing an overtly spin friendly pitch after the Kanpur incident, van Zyl said: "I hope so. But I just want a wicket where we call play a good game of cricket."

The coach feels that the mental aspect of the game has changed in the South African dressing room since their last visit here, but the challenge still lies in dealing with wickets conducive for spinners. "Mentally the South African team is better prepared then they were two years ago, but it is still going to be a challenge to deal with turning wickets."

Looking ahead into the second Test, van Zyl believes that the challenges and the hurdles are only going to get tougher. "It was a great and perfect start, but I am also realistic that it isn't going to be as easy from now on. My concern was to adapt to the Indian conditions as quickly as possible before the tour started," he said, adding, "We need to be really well prepared for the second Test match, it is going to much harder. I mean, if the first Test in Nagpur was a challenge, the second in Kolkata is going to be a bigger challenge."

On Tuesday, South Africa skipper Graeme Smith too hinted that his team was ready for any eventuality. When Smith was asked if he expected Kolkata to be a repeat of Kanpur he joked, "So what are you telling me, there is a guy with a rake at the Eden Gardens." On a more somber note he added, "I don't think anything will surprise us in Kolkata. India have more control over the conditions. We need a few days rest to regain our mental energy more than anything else. This (the Nagpur Test) has taken a lot out of the guys. There is enough in the group now and we have beaten India enough number of times."

The Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) on Wednesday threw its weight behind the Eden Gardens curator Prabhir Mukherjee insisting that they would not allow any interference in pitch preparation for the second Test. This comes a day after Mukherjee had spoken about receiving a phone call from a BCCI official asking him to prepare a spin-friendly pitch for the Test starting February 14. "We are under no pressure to prepare a tailor-made wicket," CAB joint-secretary Biswarup Dey said adding Mukherjee will be given a free hand.