Hesson wary of South Africa’s all-round pace attack

The biggest obstacle in New Zealand’s path to a first ever Test series win over South Africa is the opposition’s pace pack, according to coach Mike Hesson.

“From a seam bowling point of view, they are strong, they have got a lot of variety,” Hesson said in Durban. “They have some bounce bowlers, some good swing bowlers, some seam bowlers so that will provide it’s own challenges.”

New Zealand are fresh off a 2-0 sweep over Zimbabwe, where their batsmen profited from time in the middle but were not always challenged by a hardworking but tame attack. Donald Tiripano, Michael Chinouya, Chamu Chibhabha and Prince Masvaure all bowled around 130kphs and slower, did not find movement or bounce and offered regular freebies. Dale Steyn, Vernon Philander, Kagiso Rabada, Kyle Abbott, Wayne Parnell or Chris Morris are not expected to be as generous.

South Africa’s six seamers, of which three are likely to play, are known for swing, seam movement and speed. Even though they have not competed in a Test match in nearly seven months and two of the three first-choice picks – Philander and Steyn – missed most of last summer with injuries, Hesson expects them to pose a serious threat to his line-up.

“Vernon has played a lot of cricket recently so he has got loads of overs under his belt. He is a high quality bowler. We saw him at his best a few years ago. He hits lovely lengths and we know he is going to provide a challenge there, most likely with the new ball,” Hesson said, referring to Philander’s outings with the …

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