Challenge against Proteas: In search of elusive win

Like most venues in this part of the world, the Junction Oval in the St Kilda suburb of Melbourne is a multi-sport facility. But unlike its uber-rich 'cousins' like the MCG, it exudes old-world charm.

Home to the St Kilda Cricket Club, who feature in the Victorian Premier Cricket competition, the 163-year-old ground also served as the base of the St Kilda Football Club, an AFL side. Why, it's even hosted a legendary bout featuring Joe Frazier and Jimmy Ellis. A chap called Shane Keith Warne calls this his home ground. And, the club has started proceedings to rename the venue after the spin king.

It is here that the Indian team trained for more than three hours on Wednesday afternoon. Having enjoyed a well-deserved two-day break after their thumping win over Pakistan last Sunday, the defending champions trained diligently ahead of their crucial Group 'B' encounter against South Africa this weekend.

So what was the underlying theme of India's professional display at the Adelaide Oval? In case you're still looking for hangover cures, it was India's enviable and much-cherished all-win World cup record against their cross-border rivals. Come Sunday, India must be prepared for a slight reversal of roles against a team that also dons green.

Let's get to the point: South Africa have beaten India in each of the three World Cup games they have met in.

In 1992, openers Peter Kirsten (84) — Gary's big brother — and Andrew Hudson (53) guided them to a six-wicket win in a match affected by heavy rain. Riding on a 79-run knock from skipper Mohammad Azharuddin and a 29-ball 42 from Kapil Dev, India made 180/6 in 30 overs. South Africa won with five deliveries to spare.

In 1999, India, riding on a 97-run knock from Sourav Ganguly, posted 253/5 at the New County Ground in Hove. Javagal Srinath reduced them to 22/2, but Jacques Kallis scored a masterful 96 as the Proteas won by four wickets.

In their last World Cup encounter in Nagpur four years ago, India went from 267/1 to 296 all out to take the sheen off an imperious hundred from Sachin Tendulkar, who also hooked Dale Steyn for a six. Half-centuries from Hashim Amla, Jacques Kallis, AB de Villiers and some cool-headedness from Robin Peterson, who made 18 off seven deliveries, helped South Africa with two deliveries to spare.

Right now, South Africa are several notches above India in every department of the game. But the Indians are in no mood to let the shoulders droop. Their specific approach to training proved they were doing everything to have their bases covered. Practising on the centre wicket, batsman after batsman put the long handle to good use. None did it better than MS Dhoni. The skipper, who hasn't had a fruitful outing with the bat of late, regained his big-hitting form by gradually finding his range.

The batsmen also had stints in the nets where assistant coach (batting) Sanjay Bangar monitored their progress. A delivery, hurled by a net bowler, hit Shikhar Dhawan in the armpit and the batsman fell awkwardly. But he was up soon enough to resume batting without much ado. R Ashwin didn't have it that easy. The off-spinner was writhing in pain after the first ball he faced hit him on the right elbow. However, some ice-pack treatment did the trick. Ashwin was soon doing his thing all over again. The media manager later confirmed that the injury was not serious.

Bhuvneshwar Kumar also bowled at length without any trouble. Another player who enjoyed a long stint with both bat and ball was the left-arm spinning all-rounder Axar Patel.

Not everything about the Indian team was hunky-dory. A few locals were upset at the team's decision to keep the fans and media away from the nets. The local liaison officer informed that the team didn't want anybody to stand behind the nets.