- Former Proteas captain Faf du Plessis raised two pointed concerns about Cricket South Africa's scheduling of the first Test against Australia at Kingsmead
- The Durban venue has been a difficult ground for the Proteas, who have lost 8 of their last 12 Tests there, while Australia have won 4 consecutive matches at the ground
- Du Plessis also challenged CSA over consistently poor crowd attendance at Kingsmead during Test matches
Former Proteas captain Faf du Plessis has raised pointed questions about Cricket South Africa's scheduling logic after South Africa suffered a 214-run defeat to Australia in the opening Test of the series at Kingsmead in Durban.
Speaking on his Cricinfo podcast following the defeat, Du Plessis said he struggled to understand why CSA would open a high-profile home series at a venue where both South Africa's record is poor, and Australia's is strong.
Cricket South Africa was approached for comment on the scheduling decision on the opening day of the Test but had not responded at the time of publication.
The Proteas have now lost eight of their last 12 Tests at Kingsmead, while Australia have won four consecutive Tests at the Durban ground dating back to 2009. Du Plessis argued that the scheduling amounted to handing the visitors a psychological advantage from the outset.
"When you have a record as poor as you have at Kingsmead, Durban, and when Australia has such a good record, I think they've won their last four consecutive Test matches at Durban against us, and you start your first Test there, where you say to the opposition, 'Let's start at a place where you are most comfortable in,'" Du Plessis said.
He pointed out that other South African venues offer the Proteas more favourable conditions, noting that CSA had a choice.
"If I compare it to the other venues in South Africa, Cape Town, Port Elizabeth, Pretoria, Wanderers, at all of those venues, South Africa, the Proteas, have a superior record. So there's the first question that I would ask."
Crowd Numbers a Second Concern
Beyond the win-loss record, Du Plessis flagged poor spectator turnout at Kingsmead as a separate but equally significant issue. The Boxing Day Test has in recent years been relocated to Centurion largely for the same reason.
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Source: Briefly News
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