Gqeberha: Eight years after Sandpapergate, reverse swing is again playing a โcrucialโ role in Australiaโs Test series in South Africa, with old-ball movement a key to both Josh Hazlewoodโs outstanding first Test and the looming recall of Kagiso Rabada.
After what has felt like years of green, seaming surfaces, Hazlewood spoke openly on Friday of the importance of generating reverse swing this series, with all matches being played on traditional cricket grounds with wicket squares that can scuff the ball.
Thereโs no question about the legality of the methods being used this time to achieve it.
Hazlewoodโs 6-49 was punctuated by several moments of sharp movement once the ball had lost its shine, including David Bedinghamโs lbw dismissal and Wiaan Mulderโs leg glance into Alex Careyโs gloves. According to CricViz, it was the most old-ball movement Hazlewood had achieved in a Test match since the corresponding Durban Test in 2018.
โWith [wickets in] Australia being the green seamers, it just doesnโt get talked about at all,โ Hazlewood said.
โThe ball still looks new late in the innings if it gets that far.
โSo itโs more, you know, if you go back to SCG years ago, we definitely got reverse there every year, and then here in South Africa, [theyโre] just abrasive wickets.
โIt was very hard under foot [in Durban]. We probably got a hint of it in the first innings, and then as the game goes, it just sort of deteriorates more, and you get a bit more. So we knew it was crucial.
โYou probably want the ball a little bit harder and a little bit of reverse swing, rather than a lot of reverse swing and the ball soft. Itโs much easier to navigate as a batsman. So, you still want that carry with a harder ball, with just a hint of reverse swing, I think.โ
Hazlewood predicted similar conditions at St Georgeโs Park in what used to be known as Port Elizabeth, although forecast heavy rain on the first two days of the Test may affect matters.
โThe conditions sort of dictate it,โ he said. โSo thereโs probably more grass and seam movement if itโs not reversing, if that makes sense.
โIf the wicket is hard, firm, deteriorating, [and with] not much seam movement, youโre probably going to get that reverse swing just due to the basic conditions of the ground and the square and the wicket. So yeah, [you] sort of always find one or the other, really.โ
Hazlewood acknowledged Scott Boland was pressing hard for selection in this game, noting that the Victorianโs high standards made it somewhat easier for him, Pat Cummins and Mitchell Starc to put their hands up to miss a game if they were carrying an injury.
โHe barely bowls poorly,โ Hazlewood said of Boland.
โEvery net [session], the boys come in [and] itโs like, โOh, Scotty againโ.
โSo yeah, I think heโll play a part in this series, I think heโll play a part in the next 12 to 18 months. [Heโs a] class act. His record is ridiculous.
โIt probably makes it a bit easier on us if we are struggling from time to time to then think, you know, Scottyโs there, ready to go. It can make those conversations a bit easier, and again, itโs more of a [bowling] unit.
โMoving forward, we can not miss those, you know, big chunks [of cricket with injury]. We might miss a week or two here and there, and things settle quicker.
โWeโve just got a nice unit here at the moment.โ
Rabada addressed the Proteas squad alongside captain Temba Bavuma at training on Thursday, and Hazlewood said the fast man was a material change factor to the series, given his wicket-taking record against Australia.
โI think heโs probably got both there,โ Hazlewood said of Rabadaโs skill and leadership combination.
โThe skill setโs amazing. His strike rateโs second to none, I think, in terms of numbers. Every time he plays against us, he seems to create a bit of havoc.
โHeโs a class player, and I think the batter is going to have to be switched on when he comes out.โ
Hazlewood was also quizzed on the Australian conditions and schedule. Unsurprisingly, he said he would not like to see the SCG Test moved from its new-year slot, while also saying that grassy pitches had made life easier for fast bowlers in recent summers, but any reversion to flatter surfaces to help batsmen would not be up to him.
โIโd rather it go two days, like Mackay,โ Hazlewood said. โI think thereโs a balance there, obviously, with any sport.
โI remember when I first started playing Test cricket โ the wickets were very, very flat. You know, the average per wicket was high. The games went five days.
โSo, I think as long as you have a balance, it doesnโt have to change for the whole year. It can be, you know, week in, week out โ some spin, some seam, some are flatter. So I think that will get a better-rounded player or better-rounded bowler as well.โ
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Daniel Brettig is The Age’s chief cricket writer and the author of several books on cricket.Connect via X.From our partners
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