CRICKET – SOUTH Africa captain Aiden Markram says his side can expect to have a target on their back when they begin a new cycle of the World Test Championship (WTC) as defending champions.
South Africa play a two-Test series in Pakistan, starting on Sunday, and two games in India in November as they bid to retain the trophy they won in June by beating Australia by five wickets at the Lord’s.
The World Test Championship is decided at the end of a two-year cycle, with the top two teams competing in a one-off five-day match.
“I suppose you create a bit of a target on your back if you’ve won (the WTC), and if that’s the case, it’s fair. We want to chase a place in the final again and lift that trophy once again but realise each team will be coming for us,” said Markram, who stands in as skipper for Temba Bavuma who has been ruled out of the tour with a calf strain.
South Africa have been practising on specially prepared spinning wickets at Pretoria’s High Performance Centre. The first Test against Pakistan is in Lahore and the second begins on October 20 in Rawalpindi.
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