Dubai: The Dubai Sports City International Cricket Stadium will enter the annals of Test history today by becoming the 102nd venue to host a Test match — a moment that ardent cricket fans in the UAE have waited for many years.
When the first ball of the contest between Pakistan and South Africa is bowled, the venue will also earn the rare honour of having staged all three formats of the game ever since its debut as an international venue on April 22 last year. It will also be only the 12th instance of a Test match being played at a neutral venue.
Dubai would have become the 101st Test venue but for the Rajiv Gandhi Stadium in Hyderabad, which will stage a Test match for the first time between India and New Zealand from UAE time 8am. The Dubai Test will commence only from 10am.
The two teams have just completed a closely-fought one-day series. Though the series went in favour of South Africa 3-2, the closeness of the contest has given Pakistan the confidence. Misbah-ul Haq, Pakistan's new Test captain, said: "With some of the senior players back in the team, I am really looking forward to a good tough series. We have a balanced team to do well in the Test series."
Pakistan has been reeling from the pressure of off-field events — the latest being wicketkeeper Zulqarnain Haider's vanishing act from the hotel room, but Haq refused to be fazed. Pakistan's last Test series in England too had ended in controversy with players being pulled up for alleged spot-fixing. "You cannot go ahead with the past — you have to look forward all the time. My team's focus will be in the Test series in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. With regard to Haider, we have a new good wicketkeeper."
"As a captain I will try to set an example by performing at my best," he assured.
Smith targets clean sweep
South African skipper Graeme Smith, after having won the Twenty20 and One-day series against Pakistan, is aiming for a clean sweep by winning the Test series too. "We have been fantastic to come away from home and walk away with two trophies. It has been so much of cricket in such a short period of time. Even the preparation for the Test has not been ideal with a quick turnaround recovering from the one-day series," he said.
"We had a few guys joining us on Monday evening and they are guys who had specifically played this format of the game for a particular period of time and our focus has shifted now. We have five big Test matches ahead of us now and we want to be as successful as possible in this format of the game. This is a format in which we have been successful for the last three years and we want to carry that form," he said.
A keen battle is expected and according to Smith: "In the heat of the five days, it is going to be hard and a real test of not only skills but also our fitness levels too."
