South Africa batsman Aiden Markram says he’s unsure how the Australian team will be received by home fans in next month’s three-Test series, but he hopes it will be respectful. The Tests in Durban, Gqeberha, and Cape Town mark the first time these teams have faced each other in South Africa since the notorious 2018 “Sandpapergate” incident, during which the visiting side was accused of attempting to tamper with the ball in the third Test at Newlands in Cape Town.
Markram has been absent from international cricket since South Africa’s T20 World Cup semifinal defeat by New Zealand in Kolkata back in March. Since returning from The Hundred in early August, he has not participated in a cricket match, having withdrawn for personal reasons. As he prepared for his return, Markram trained with the provincial union Titans and spent hours practising in the nets at Tshwane University.
Markram admitted that match practice provides a kind of preparation unmatched by any other type of training. He acknowledged the importance of his long break from competitive cricket and understood how that fact would influence his strategy for the match.
Times Now quotes Markram saying, “You’ll have to spend a bit of time out there. It might feel a bit ‘French’ at the start, but hopefully if I get through that initial period, I can get a bit of a flow from there. There is no prep like match practice. I realise I’ve not played a cricket match in some time. One is excited, but it’s also about respecting that that is the case, which will affect my approach tomorrow.”
South Africa leads the current three-match one-day international series 1-0 as they prepare for the second game in Johannesburg on Sunday. Markram thinks this is a beneficial match for both teams as they prepare for the 2027 Cricket World Cup, which will be jointly hosted by South Africa, Namibia, and Zimbabwe.
Markram’s performance against Australia offers grounds for optimism regarding his comeback. In ODI matches against Australia, he scores an average of 38.15 over 14 games, which is marginally higher than his overall ODI average of 37.09. In Test cricket, Markram scores at an average above 60 against Australia, having notched three of his eight Test centuries in those matches.
