Kolkata set to spin fresh tale

Focus on bowlers, as exciting India-South Africa Short Test series begins at Eden Gardens

- SWAROOP SWAMINATHAN

THE grass in the outfield has been trimmed, the final billboard is going up and the nuts, bolts and nails are being placed in their rightful positions. On the morning before the morning of a big series, Eden Gardens is gradually ensuring that things are being put in place ahead of a short but fascinating two-match Test series against the world champions and the hardest standalone assignment this format of the game can offer: winning a series in India.

Temba Bavuma said as much in the pre-match press conference but India do not have the same veneer of invincibility they possessed, say, in 2019 when the visitors came here last. That was the apogee of India’s home dominance when their batters piled on the runs on batting decks before the pacers used their nous to flatten the visitors across the series. Of course, it kind of helped that the Proteas lost the toss on all three occasions but Faf du Plessis & Co. didn’t get a sniff.