India and South Africa are in the race to dethrone "the ageing and wounded" Australia as the world's number one cricket team, former cricketers and commentators said.
PERTH: India and South Africa are in the race to dethrone "the ageing and wounded" Australia as the world's number one cricket team, former cricketers and commentators said on Monday after the Proteas had walloped the hosts by successfully chasing 414 runs to win the first Test at the Waca.
But some, like former Australian skipper Ian Chappell, are of the view that Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s men look the most likely successors of the once dominant Aussies.
Chappell said India have a well-balanced attack that has experienced a good deal of success against Australia, while South Africa's pace attack has still only displayed the potential to rattle Ponting & Co.
Chappell said another big difference was the captaincy of Mahendra Singh Dhoni. "Dhoni is a good, aggressive captain who challenges the Australians, while Graeme Smith relies on a conservative approach and rah-rah speeches.
"South Africa are a very determined team and they field as though their life depends on it, but they play a conservative brand of cricket that was never going to beat the Australia of old. This is a lesson India learned a while ago and they are even better equipped for toe-to-toe combat with Australia now that Dhoni has ascended to the Test captaincy," he said.
Chappell said it was creditable for India to beat Australia when they were in their prime. "In India’s favour, they challenged and beat Australia when they were in their prime, while South Africa are challenging Ponting’s ageing and wounded team."
The Australian media lambasted senior players like Matthew Hayden and Brett Lee for failing to raise their game as Australia failed to defend a mammoth 413 in the Perth Test.
Writing in the Sydney Morning Herald, noted writer and former England cricketer Peter Roebuck said, "[Mitchell] Johnson won them the match and the rest contrived to throw it away. Not that all were equally to blame, and Brad Haddin and Brett Lee deserve commendation. Even so, it was a second-rate performance.
"The Australians batted horribly and threw wickets away recklessly, none more so than Andrew Symonds, in whom a beleaguered captain has put so much trust," he said.
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