Having staged a remarkable turnaround in their fortunes by drubbing Sri Lanka, India will seek to maintain their winning run when they take on an equally determined South Africa in the first one-day international in Hyderabad on Wednesday.
Both the teams are high on confidence and will be keen to start the five-match series on a winning note in what promises to be a thrilling contest of skills and nerves at the newly constructed Rajiv Gandhi stadium.
India go into the series after having routed Sri Lanka with an emphatic 6-1 margin and are fully aware that the Proteas have also been enjoying a fine run having thrashed New Zealand 4-0 in the recent one-day series.
The Indian team appears complete at the moment with the return of Sachin Tendulkar following a long injury lay-off and the fresh influx of youngsters has given more options for the team management.
Tendulkar's return to form seems to be a worrying factor for the South African team as their coach Mickey Arthur has warned that the master batsman holds the key to the series.
"Tendulkar is a key member of the team and he has a big role to play. We are aware of what he is capable of doing. But we want to win the one-day series in India and we will go all out," Arthur said.
Arthur, who was appointed coach around the same time as Indian coach Greg Chappell with the 2007 World Cup in view, praised the Chappell-Rahul Dravid combination and their inclination for experimentation by sending in Irfan Pathan and Mahendra Singh Dhoni at the number three slot.
"The things Dravid and Chappell were doing is good, but we back ourselves and are here to win," Arthur said.
Wicket-keeper batsman Dhoni, who was adjudged the man-of-the-series against Sri Lanka, will be the man to watch in the five-match series. The hard-hitting batsman has already become a star with his heroics and the team management will be looking for significant contributions from him.
The visitors, however, maintained that they have studied his game which was played with a good technique and the analysis had given them some thing which they hope to execute to tame the Jharkhand player.
Virender Sehwag, who is struggling to hit peak form, and skipper Dravid will be the batting mainstay with whatever new and surprising aces the Indian coach and captain have up their sleeves.
Young blood in the form of R P Singh, Suresh Raina and J P Yadav is available for the Indian team to experiment with their bowling.
The visitors are not new to spin, but Harbhajan Singh is in good nick and likely to excel at home.
On the rival front, skipper Graeme Smith, the youngest captain of South Africa, who radiates energy, approval and confidence would be joined by batsmen AB de Villiers, Ashwell Prince and Justine Kemp, who has the record of winning matches from the jaws of defeat.
Among the bowlers, off-spinner Johan Botha has proved in the practice match against the Hyderabad Cricket Association XI, which the visitors won by eight wickets on Monday, that he could be a utility man when required.
After South Africa skipper and coach have indicated that they could retain the same team for the opening match, Botha is expected to make his debut tomorrow.
Smith said his performance is just the start the team was looking for.
"I was very satisfied with the spin Johan achieved. Even our opponents' spinners did not get the same kind of movement. He changes his speed and also has good control. We don't want to put too much pressure on him too soon and I think the tour will be valuable experience for him."
Kemp, who did not get an opportunity to bat yesterday, said: "In the Indian conditions, we have to see how the ball comes an it would be great to be among the runs."
"It swings more than in South Africa. So your technique needs to be perfect for the first five overs. But once you're set it's much easier," said de Villiers.
Teams:
India: Rahul Dravid (captain), Virender Sehwag, Sachin Tendulkar, Yuvraj Singh, Suresh Raina, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Harbhajan Singh, Murali Kartik, Irfan Pathan, Ajit Agarkar, Sree Santh, Gautam Gambhir, Rudra Pratap Singh, Mohammad Kaif, Jai Prakash Yadav.
South Africa: Graeme Smith (captain), Jacques Kallis, Johan Botha, Mark Boucher, AB de Villiers, Andrew Hall, Justin Kemp, Charl Langeveldt, Albie Morkel, Andre Nel, Makhaya Ntini, Justin Ontong, Robin Peterson, Shaun Pollock, Ashwell Prince.
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