South Africa have got off to a stuttering start in their World Test Championship title defence. Even if they overcome the initial hurdle, stern tests await their legacy.
South Africa’s schedule in the 2025-2027 World Test Championship is a reflection of Test cricket’s struggles to find slots in a busy calendar. The Big Three keep meeting for five-Test series, but the small matter of lifting the WTC mace has done little to boost South Africa’s Test cricket fixtures.
They start the cycle with two Tests in each of Pakistan and India, but do not host a single Test match in the summer of 2025/26. Ten months after the India tour, they host Australia, Bangladesh, and England, then tour Sri Lanka – all in six months while making room for the SA20.
They are playing two more Tests this time than the 12 in last cycle, one against each of England and Australia. These are difficult assignments – these are the only two teams against whom they have a win-loss ratio below 1 – but as world champions, they will back themselves to cross these hurdles on home turf. They do have the bowling for these conditions.
Far steeper challenges awaits them on the road. And if the first three days in Lahore are anything to go by, things do not look rosy for them.
The burden of the world champion
The WTC final might have erased the “chokers” tag, at least for now, but South Africa now have a heavier burden to bear. As world champions, they will be expected to beat the other sides, especially Pakistan, who had finished last in the previous cycle. Unfortunately, they started the series without two key players – captain Temba Bavuma and main spinner Keshav Maharaj.
Yet, taking full advantage of the home conditions that often decide Test matches, the owners of the wooden spoon are on top at Lahore against the world champions. India and Sri Lanka have taken notes, and are almost certain to greet South Africa the same way.
Pakistan’s change in approach came in 2024, after a 0-2 sweep at home against Bangladesh, followed by a hammering against England in the first Test of the three-match series. Almost overnight, Pakistan decided that they did not care about their reputation as a hotbed for fast-bowling talent: they switched to rank turners and used two seasoned finger spinners.
Finger spin may be the least spectacular genre of bowling, but Pakistan did not care. Neither Noman Ali nor Sajid Khan has a “magic” delivery, but Pakistan used them in abundance. They won the England series and, after a 1-1 draw against the West Indies, are on top at Lahore.
Over this period, spinners have accounted for 90 (Noman 44, Sajid 37) of the 92 Test wickets Pakistan have taken at home. Senuran Muthusamy’s 11 wickets notwithstanding, South Africa missed Maharaj’s experience and class in these conditions.
India is likely to be different. Last year, New Zealand ended India’s series-winning streak at home – that too with a 3-0 clean sweep. At Bengaluru, India won the toss and – by Rohit Sharma’s admission – were wrong in batting first. New Zealand won the other two tosses on rank turners and completed the rout.
Perhaps with that in mind (and the fact that the West Indies are unlikely to pose threat), India opted for flatter wickets. In particular, the Delhi strip was too slow for at least the first three days for the spinners to cause any damage. At the post-match press conference, head coach Gautam Gambhir called for more pace and bounce.
If that happens, India are likely to revert to their WTC-era rank turners – or at least somewhere in between. Against a spin attack where Axar Patel cannot break through to the first XI, South Africa will be tested more than India will by Maharaj.
Sri Lanka (Galle, in all likelihood) is some time away, but they have their spinners too – and history is stacked against South Africa. In the last 25 years, they have won a solitary Test in the nation. Things do not look good for the world champions.
And if they do falter, the knives will be out. When they qualified for the final of the 2023-25 edition, pundits and fans had pointed out their “easy” schedule (ignoring the fact that they had as good as foregone the points for the two Tests in New Zealand). The criticism will be harsher this time.
South Africa have been there, done that
Until their exile, South Africa never played an Asian nation, let alone in Asia. Since their readmission, South Africa have seldom had a supply chain of spinners. While touring Asia, South Africa have rarely matched the spin might of the hosts. They resolved this by backing their strength – their fast bowlers.
The four most prolific wicket-takers in Asia – Dale Steyn, Shaun Pollock, Morne Morkel, Makhaya Ntini – are all fast bowlers who feature in their top six Test wicket-takers across conditions. In 2024, when they South Africa became the first “SENA” team to win a Test series in Bangladesh since 2009/10, Kagiso Rabada had 14 wickets at a single-digit average.
In other words, South Africa have traditionally relied as much on their pacemen in Asia as they have on spinners. That is perhaps something to ponder ahead of the next Test.
