Proteas' Aiden Markram 'feeling good' ahead of facing 'world class' Aussie fast bowlers at Lord's

LONDON: There is no hiding from the challenge that awaits the Proteas in the eagerly anticipated World Test Championship final starting at Lord’s on Wednesday.

The Proteas’ inexperienced batting unit, with only captain Temba Bavuma having played more than 50 Tests, will go head-to-head against a bowling attack that sits comfortably at the dining table if the finest that’s ever played the red-ball game. 

The “Awesome Foursome” consisting of Australian captain Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Nathan Lyon have 1508 Test wickets among them.

Starc’s left-arm variety is complimented by Hazlewood’s metronomic accuracy, backed up by Cummins’ relentless aggression with Lyon’s immaculate control allowing the seamers to rotate seamlessly from the other end. 

In tandem, they have only lost eight out of 32 Tests - but importantly two of those have come against South Africa in 2018 - and even more poignant is the fact that Proteas opener Aiden Markram struck two centuries in that fateful series, including one in the victory at the Wanderers to seal the Proteas’ first home series over the Aussies since 1970. 

Markram is fully aware that the responsibility lies on his shoulders, along with his new rookie opening partner Ryan Rickelton, to extinguish Australia’s new-ball fire to shield the young middle-order from the expected flames. 

"When you're opening the batting, obviously your responsibility is to calm the changing room down, get the team off to a good start and get us ahead of the game," Markram told the media after the Proteas’ first training session at Lord’s.

"That's the challenge, that's what excites us. When you're preparing against your bowlers who are world-class, it can only help you as a batter, as uncomfortable as it can be at times. But that's the gauge - that you judge where your game is at."

While admittedly a completely different format, Markram’s performance at the recent Indian Premier League (IPL) where he topped 450 runs for the first time, which included five half-centuries for the Lucknow Super Giants, has certainly helped the confidence heading into the WTC Final.

"I'm feeling good. I feel like I'm moving well," he said. "The IPL is obviously a completely different format but it was nice to come into a game feeling good. 

“I'm pleased to be in that headspace at the moment and when you're feeling like this, it's really about cashing in and trying to make a difference for the team."

The Proteas enjoyed a fairly measured opening training session at Lord’s with former skipper Graeme Smith, who held aloft the ICC mace here at the hallowed ground back in 2012, paying the team a visit and having a lengthy chat with the young batters such as Rickelton and Tristan Stubbs and also with coach Shukri Conrad.

Markram believes it's all part of the build-up as the Proteas work their way towards Wednesday’s liftoff. 

"It's about each guy making sure that they don't peak too early and get too excited too early, because then you end up draining yourself," Markram said. 

"So, managing your loads at training, managing specifics at training, instead of trying to flush everything out in one session, have that gradual build-up so that by the time you get to day one, you feel like you've ticked every box, but it hasn't been at 100 miles an hour. 

“We have to respect the Test match format. It takes a lot out of you from an energy point of view and a psychological point of view. We need to be fresh and ready to go on day one.

"We know the importance of starting well, trying to get ahead of the game early and how important each session is going to be. There's no second dip at it. We have to make sure we hit the ground running and are nice and sharp come day one."