South Africa’s batsmen showed a marked improvement on Sunday on the
opening day of a three-day tour match but there were growing concerns that all-rounder Jacques Kallis may not be fit for the first Test against Australia starting Friday.
Captain Graeme Smith opened the batting against a Western Australian XI at Perth’s James Oval, smacking 50 from 59 balls before he was caught behind.
Top-order batsmen Ashwell Prince, who retired on 68 not out, and Herschelle Gibbs with 62 also showed flair as the Proteas declared at 292 for 8 in their first innings.
In reply the Western Australian XI was 26 for 2 at stumps.
Although the South African performance was a marked improvement on their opening tour match which ended in an innings defeat by the full Western Australian side, Kallis’s injury is a concern.
He suffered inflamed tendons in his left elbow during the team’s tour of India last month and then tore a tendon in the same area while batting in the nets shortly after arriving in Perth last week.
Kallis, the number-one ranked Test batsman, cannot lift a bat without pain and has been given until Tuesday to prove his fitness for the Test.
”We’re not going to take a chance,” said team physiotherapist Shane Jabaar, adding that Kallis would have to be fit to practice in the nets on at least two days to be eligible for selection.
”We’re going to be governed by his responses and what the clinical picture shows us. If he’s not ready, he’s not ready,” said Jabaar.
”He’s been receiving ongoing treatment and we feel he’s still got a chance to heal completely before the first Test and to net before that Test.”
Kallis averages 57.07 from his 94 Test matches and also boasts 184 wickets at 31.63. He was the joint winner of the ICC player of the year award for 2005 with England’s Andrew Flintoff.
The all-rounder’s withdrawal would be a major blow to a team facing Australia in a Test series for the first time in more than three years. South Africa have failed to beat Australia in a Test series since being readmitted to international cricket in 1991.
Despite injury problems, Kallis still averaged a team-high 80.50 with the bat in the drawn one-day series in India.
Jabaar is confident Kallis will be fit for the Boxing Day Test in Melbourne if he fails to recover in time for Friday.
But there was also some good news for the tourists, with Smith showing he had all but shrugged off a troublesome finger injury.
And officials said spinner Nicky Boje, who required seven stitches after splitting webbing in his left hand during Friday’s one-day victory over a Chairman’s XI, will also be fit for Friday.
Speedster Shaun Pollock led the bowling on Sunday, claiming 2-11 after the home side were sent in shortly before stumps.
Spinner Aaron Heal was the pick of the home side’s bowlers, finishing with 3-67. -Sapa-AFP