Du Plessis wants SA to set the pace

The offices are closed, the beaches are full and the trees are draped with lights. It’s so festive that Faf du Plessis even wore a Santa hat to his pre-match press conference, on Saturday.

South Africa will take Christmas Day off, as they’ve done for the last three years, with only optional training available for the die-hards. That’s after only convening on Thursday which has means they would have had a total of three training sessions going into the Test. In between that, the players along with their families were hosted by coach Russell Domingo, who bought drinks and food for the guys which du Plessis said was “very strange thing.”

It all sounds as normal as it should at this time of year, doesn’t it? But underneath that are real jitters that the seasonal slow-down could sideswipe the seriousness of what lies ahead. “It’s got a Christmassy, holiday feel to it and it’s a red flag,” du Plessis admitted. “It can creep into your game very quickly and you take things for granted or you go into a comfort zone and are just a little bit too lackadaisical, and you find yourself in trouble.”

South Africa know all about that. They have lost five of their last nine Boxing Day Tests at home, dating back to 2004, and have won just two. Of the four they’ve played in Port Elizabeth, they’ve only triumphed once. Combine that with a reputation for slow starters and what is expected to be a slow St George’s Park pitch and the first Test may present Sri Lanka their best opportunity to ambush the hosts, which is why du …

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