A series to test which team’s transition is working better

JOHANNESBURG – The English summer of 2012 was filled with riches for South African sport; Chad le Clos beat Michael Phelps, Caster Semenya won Olympic gold and Ernie Els triumphed at The Open.

At the same time, Hashim Amla made The Oval and Lord’s his playgrounds – scoring a triple century at the former and a hundred in the second innings at the latter, as the Proteas overcame the then No.1 Test side in the world with class, style, efficiency and Kevin Pietersen’s phone texts.

That year’s 2-0 series win for Graeme Smith’s team is the last time South Africa tasted success in a Test series against the English. In the next 12 Tests between the two countries, South Africa emerged winners just three times.

In the period after England beat South Africa in 2020, the English team went into a downward spiral. They lost in India, lost at home to New Zealand, got belted in Australia, struggled in a home series with India and were beaten in the Caribbean.

Change came first in the shape of Rob Key, who was appointed director of cricket and made a surprising choice to hand the coaching reins of the Test side to Brendon McCullum, while Joe Root’s decision to step down as captain saw Ben Stokes become skipper.

There’s been a revolution. At Lord’s in June, England chased 277 in the fourth innings to beat New Zealand. It got better afterwards. In the next Test at Nottingham, a furious assault from Jonny Bairstow saw England successfully chase 299 – scoring at close to six runs an over. The next match at Headingley it was 296, again Bairstow blasting an unbeaten 71 off only 44 balls. The pièce de résistance came against India at Edgbaston, providing a clear illustration of how England had turned around their attitude in less than a year.

It was the fifth Test of a series which had started last year and which India led 2-1, until Covid (and the IPL) meant the Indian team had to leave early. Virat Kohli lorded over Root in 2021. In Birmingham it all changed. The Indians had controlled the match until the fourth innings, when Bairstow again – with an assist from Root – propelled England to a seven wicket victory, chasing down 378. It was ‘Bazball’ in excelsis.

South Africa’s own turnaround has been less explosive. From the home defeat to England in 2020 – Mark Boucher’s first series in charge – which was followed by another series loss in Pakistan, the Proteas have been on an upward trend.

It’s worth recalling the upheaval at the time. Besides all the off-field stuff, there was Faf du Plessis’s decision to quit Test cricket, Quinton de Kock being made captain and all those batting collapses.

Making Dean Elgar Test captain has provided stability and solidity. Beating the West Indies, while not notable, was important, and then of course there was the home series win against India.

That victory instilled confidence and the emergence of new players such as Keegan Petersen and Marco Jansen provided cause for further optimism. Coming from behind to draw the series in New Zealand – after spending a lengthy period in strict isolation – was another feather in the cap, as was the series win against Bangladesh, achieved in tricky conditions at home. That series further underlined the strides the team was making and the depth that existed in the local game.

All of that will be tested over the next few weeks by England. Boucher, through all the controversy he has endured in the last year, along with Elgar and vice-captain Temba Bavuma, has instilled honesty and enjoyment back into the Proteas change-room.

Even amid the drama surrounding Boucher, there was an intense focus about the Proteas when it came to what happens on the field. The England series is the first since that cloud over Boucher was lifted. Free of distraction, how might the Proteas play? This series provides a significant challenge of both teams’ recent transformations.