South Africa’s recent heartbreak was about eight months ago when they lost to India in the final of the T20 World Cup. However, all that is in the past. With the South Africans having secured their place in the WTC final against the mighty Australia, the two powerhouses will collide starting June 11 at England’s iconic Lord’s Cricket Ground. Despite having faced each other in the semifinals a few times before, the summit clash offers a different test of strength, nerves and character. Australia are coming off a resounding come-from-behind 3-1 win against India at home, capturing the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. In contrast, South Africa has not put a foot wrong since last year’s Cape Town Test against India. Still, Pollock feels getting over the defending champions will be a huge task in itself.

“I think it’s going to be a tough one for South Africa. I don’t think we are going in as favourites. Let’s be honest. If you look at the way Australia is playing their Test cricket, and you also look at the make-up of the South African side. But the funny thing about Lord’s in June is you win the toss and bowl first on the day because you can have a wonderful first innings and put the team under pressure,” Pollock, who played 108 Tests and 303 ODIs for South Africa, told The Hindustan Times.

“So as I said, I don’t think they are going as favourites, but they have shown some unbelievable character to qualify, and you never know. We love cricket because there are no scripts involved. You can’t write a script three months proper. You’ll have to see how things unfold in the day. They are in the final; they’ve got an opportunity and let’s see how they go.”

Having said that, if one team can slay the Australian beast, it’s the Proteas. When was the last time South Africa played Test cricket this admirably? Despite questions about his form and captaincy in white-ball cricket, Temba Bavuma has been a sort of revelation as a skipper in Tests, leading his troops, especially the bowlers, commendably. Despite the absence of Anrich Nortje and Nandre Burger, just two of the many South African cricketers currently injured and on the shelf, to have not lost a Test match since January of last year is one heck of an achievement.

“They have done remarkably well. If you look at the batting line-up, you wouldn’t have read into it 18 months ago but the amount of hundreds that they have managed to score, I think has been impressive. And also, the way they have adapted. We are missing some of our star bowlers. And they’ve still found other ways and people to step up and do the job,” adds Pollock, who picked up over 800 wickets for his country.

“There are a few people who say that they haven’t played Australia, they didn’t play England. We’ve played India, but it probably should have been a three-match series. But at the end of the day, from a South Africa perspective, we weren’t at our best in terms of personnel, and we’ve found people. And you can only beat what’s in front of you.”

Not a fan of big scores in SA20, says Pollock

Pollock, part of the commentary panel during the SA20, agrees to the theory that in order to make the tournament or T20 as a whole interesting, the need to have run-fests may not always be the way forward. The two games played in the SA20 have witnessed polar opposite outcomes. On Thursday, two-time defending champions endured a lop-sided defeat to MI Cape Town, getting skittled for 77 in a chase of 175 at Gqeberha, thus handing MICT a resounding 97-run victory. Less than 24 hours later, Kingsmead, Durban experienced a thriller, with the Super Giants defending 209 against Pretoria Capitals by two runs.

Two days, two very different results, in two very different cities and playing conditions within the country.

“It’s a hard one to predict because weather conditions can dictate really how surfaces are prepared. Teams can get folded, but if you’ve got a batter like Klaasen, who kicks into top gear, the Durban Super Giants can get 170 every innings. I do like to see the bowlers fighting back, so I don’t necessarily want there to be massive scores. And also, some of the best T20 stuff generates from low-scoring encounters where people have to work a way out,” Pollock said.