Aiden Markram braces for spin challenge in Gaddafi stadium

LAHORE, Oct 11 (APP): South African stand-in captain Aiden Markram has said that the Proteas had made good preparations and were ready to face the spin-bowling challenge during the first test match at the Gaddafi stadium on Sunday (tomorrow).
In a customary pre-match press conference ahead of the two-test series opener at the Gaddafi stadium here on Saturday, he said the spin-friendly tracks pose a challenge and as a team they are not exposed to such conditions, it’s exciting and a great opportunity for us to get things right in these conditions. He said the proteas were focused.
On the spin-friendly tracks, he said “Yeah, we expect that, of course. There’s no shying away from that. That’s what we expect. Obviously, from a team point of view, the bounce is a lot lower than South Africa as well. So that’s something different and, again, another new challenge for us that we look forward to.
On red-ball captain Temba Bavuma, Markram said he is not in the side due to injury and everyone knows he’s the champion captain of South Africa. “We’re going to miss Temba a lot of course. He’s our leader. You don’t need to give him any introduction. He’s a batter firstly for us that has been doing incredibly well and playing under some real pressure situations and performing and then naturally the leadership as well,” he added.
On the preparation for the Pakistan tour, he said preparations have been good, thanks. Naturally, we had a camp back in South Africa where we tried to simulate conditions as best as we could. A lot of focus again on spin play, and our spinners getting used to the ball spinning a lot compared to back in South Africa.
On filling in the shoes of absent Keshav Maharaj, the stand-in captain said that Muthuswamy definitely will play being the only other left-arm off-spinner as Keshav Maharaj will join the team in the second test match.
“You miss Kes heaps. He’s incredible even when the ball doesn’t spin. It’s a big loss for us of course but again it’s an opportunity for two or three other new spinners of ours to put their hand up and stake a claim which is really exciting. We expect the conditions to spin of course”, Markram said.
Markram was tacit in acknowledging that Pakistan enjoy advantage over What do you think are Pakistan’s biggest strengths in this series? What do you think are Pakistan’s biggest strengths in this series? How do you expect them? Yeah, I mean, they’re playing in their home conditions, so that’s a big strength on its own. They know the conditions really well. They know how to perform and play well in these conditions.
On the Pakistan challenge, the stand-in captain said Pakistan are playing in their home conditions, so that’s a challenge. From a batting and bowling point of view, they know how to go about their business in these conditions, and that’s going to be a big positive for them.
He said “we’re going to need to be on our games and up for those types of challenges and take them head on. You can’t back down. You have to give your absolute best as a team out there on the field and see where it gets you at the end of the day.
On the spin challenge, the stand-in captain Markram said the tour poses challenge to the skills and strengths as a batting unit and ultimately it will always come down to the bowler’s best skill versus the batter’s best skill and you train really hard, you back the options that you believe in and that you feel are your strengths and it gives you the best chance of succeeding.