The Hindu : Sport : Hashim Amla poised for his 50th Test

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Hashim Amla poised for his 50th Test

Special Correspondent

This year alone, the soft-spoken bearded Amla has made 630 runs in four innings against India
He's looking forward to correcting his poor run in Kingsmead, where he learnt his game

— PHOTO: AFP

MAN TO WATCH:All eyes will be on Hashim Amla as he prepares for his 50th Test match on Boxing Day.

DURBAN: If India is to find a way back into the series, its bowlers will first need to find a way past Hashim Amla, who is poised to play his 50th Test, here on his home-ground.

This year alone, the soft-spoken, bespectacled, bearded Amla has made 630 runs in four innings against India, each innings realising at least a century; he's been dismissed twice. “It's quite funny, actually,” said Amla, laughing, when asked about this.

“I don't know what to say. I'm just very grateful that I've had a good year so far. At the end of the day it's the players who can perform consistently that stand out.”

India will be heartened to know that Amla hasn't the best record in Kingsmead. The 27-year-old has scored only 122 runs in nine innings, including three ‘ducks' and four other single-digit scores. The thinking in the Indian camp is to make Amla play more when he first arrives in the middle. Amla left alone 12 of his first 20 balls in his innings of 140 in Centurion.

Looking to square up

India's bowlers will look to encourage the square slash early in his innings. Towards this cause, gully could be left open, for it has been observed that he doesn't play the stroke when gully is stationed. The slips will be augmented. The intention is to provoke a mistake in the stroke that will result in an edge.

Certainly, that is one of the plans, but Amla has made a habit of ruining plans. And he's looking forward to correcting his poor run in Kingsmead, where he learnt his game.

“Any Test at my home-ground is a special occasion,” he said. “Being the 50th Test doesn't make it any more important, to be honest. It would be lovely if I can make a hundred because my record in Tests here is not fantastic.

“In saying that, I've always enjoyed playing at Kingsmead. I've been very fortunate growing up on this wicket, with the bounce and the pace. I'm not sure how the Test wicket is going to play, but on a good day, when the wicket's flat, it's a fantastic place to play. The boundaries are short and you get fantastic value for shots.”

It's a remarkable story; the rise of South Africa's first Test cricketer of Indian origin. He's reached this far without compromising on his beliefs — refusing to wear the team sponsor's logo because it was a beer manufacturer's — and despite batting with a style South Africa isn't used to, and thus took time to comprehend.

Amla, who has always put the team's needs first, gave a typically measured reply when asked about the second Test, and whether his playing his 50th would be a distraction.

“I think you all know that the team always comes first and the fact that we won the last Test in a big series has taken precedence over any other distraction,” he said. “It's a big chance to seal the series, but as you can see it's hot and humid, so it's going to be hard work.”

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