South Africa vs Australia 2018: 3 key factors ahead of the Test series

After a disastrous time in colored clothing at home, South Africa get back to whites when they take on Australia in the four-match Test series that starts on March 1 at Durban.

It is expected to be a battle between the fast bowling units of both the sides.

While the focus is on the likes of Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Pat Cummins on one side and Kagiso Rabada, Morne Morkel and Vernon Philander on the other, there are other subplots that might impact the outcome of one of the most anticipated Test series of the year.

Let’s go through the three key factors that ought to have an impact on the series:

The 22 yards

The pitch could be a big factor in determining the result

In recent times, the focus before a high-profile series has always been on the playing surface and it won’t be any different in this series as well. There was severe criticism from all quarters for the pitches prepared during the India series, that even led to the ICC declaring the one prepared for the final Test at Wanderers as “poor”. There was too much help for the fast bowlers and batsmen from both sides copped a lot of body blows right through the match.

It's a no-brainer as to what sort of surface South Africa prepares for the Australia series. Knowing very well about the potent Aussie pace attack, the Proteas are likely to provide dry and slow wickets which will not only keep their quick men at bay, but as history suggests, will see their batsmen struggle to get going on sluggish surfaces.

The first three Test will be played in the coastal areas of South Africa, and during the latter stages of the summer, the wickets are more likely to be drier. This is where spinners might play a crucial role through the series.

Australia certainly has a huge advantage in that department as Nathan Lyon is probably in the form of his life and his partnership with three fast bowlers has proved to be very lethal for opposition batsmen in the last year or so. If Lyon finds his rhythm early on in the series, Smith’s men could very well maintain their unbeaten record on South African shores since the latter's re-admission into cricket.

Steven Smith vs AB de Villiers

Steve Smith vs AB de Villiers will be a competition to look out for

When two strong bowling units come up against each other, the team that bats better goes on to have the final laugh on most occasions. While it is anticipated to be a low-scoring series, all it takes is one crucial knock that goes a long way in winning the match. This is where Australia and South Africa will pin their hopes on two of the best batsmen going around in international cricket at the moment.

Australian captain Steven Smith has been almost unstoppable in the past few years in Test cricket. For a player who started his international career as a leg-spinner, Smith’s rise as a batsman has been nothing short of phenomenal. He finished last year as the leading run-scorer in Tests, with England being the latest to suffer during the Ashes when they ran out of all the ideas to dismiss him cheaply.

Even though there is David Warner & Co in that lineup, South Africa will be well aware of the 'Smith' threat, who likes to keep batting for long periods and is also equally strong against pace and spin.

One of the main reasons for South Africa winning the series 2-1 against India were the crucial knocks from AB de Villiers in the first two Tests. While his class is known to everyone, his style of counter-attacking batting will be crucial against a bowling attack that has been relentless for a long period.

Like Smith, De Villiers too has the knack for adapting to the match situation and is pretty good at both offensive and defensive, and will be the key to the home side’s fortunes.

Lower order contributions

Mitchell Marsh has been manning the all-rounder's role

With good fast bowlers on both the sides, the chances of teams losing early wickets against the brand new cherry will be likely on quite a few occasions. Good Test teams over the past have always had good contributions with the bat from the lower order.

With Mitchell Marsh manning the all-rounder's role at No 6, Tim Paine, Mitchell Starc and Pat Cummins are all capable of scoring some useful runs down the order, and that was one of the key aspects during Australia's successful Ashes campaign down under. Once again, they will look to contribute as they know each and every run will be vital in a tough series.

South Africa will want their wicketkeeper Quinton de Kock to come back to batting form after a slump in the past few months. If he gets going at No 7, he can carry the lower middle-order because of his aggressive stroke play. With the likes of Kagiso Rabada, Vernon Philander and Keshav Maharaj lower down the order, South Africa possess decent batting depth and they would be needed against one of the best Test attacks in the world right now.