AFP, Nagpur :
Hashim Amla returns to the scene of a personal triumph looking to revive both his and South Africa’s fortunes when the third Test against India starts in Nagpur on Wednesday.
The Proteas captain hit an unbeaten 253, the second highest of his 23 three-figure knocks in Test cricket, at the same VCA stadium on the outskirts in Nagpur in 2010.
Fiery pace bowler Dale Steyn then picked up a 10-wicket haul in the same match, including a career-best 7-51 in the first innings, to fashion South Africa’s emphatic win by an innings and six runs.
The top-ranked tourists, down 1-0 in the current four-match series, will hope to recreate the same magic as they battle to preserve their nine-year unbeaten series record on foreign soil.
The usually prolific Amla has endured a lean series so far, making 43 and 0 in the first Test in Mohali and seven in the rain-ruined second match in Bangalore.
The scores are a far cry from Amla’s amazing record in India where in six previous Tests before the current series he had scored 823 runs at an average of 102.87 with four centuries.
Steyn’s availability remains uncertain due to his slow recovery from a groin strain that he suffered in the first Test which forced him to miss the Bangalore match.
With Kyle Abbott having already replaced the injured Vernon Philander, the tourists flew in fast bowler Marchant de Lange, who played the last of his two Tests way back in 2012, as cover for Steyn.
“At the moment we only have three fit seamers in Morne Morkel, Kagiso Rabada and Abbott,” said South African coach Russell Domingo.
“We want to be prepared in case one of the three breaks down.”
