ABU DHABI // If the Jacques Kallis we have seen until now was jaded, nothing can help Test bowlers.
The South Africa all-rounder has not played cricket since his stint with Kolkata Knight Riders in the Indian Premier League finished in May.
He took his first significant break from the game after that and has returned, ominously for Pakistan’s bowlers, refreshed.
“It’s been probably what I needed,” Kallis said ahead of the first Test on Monday in Abu Dhabi. “After the IPL, I felt like I wanted a break. After 17-18 years, just felt I needed a good three months away, so its been a pleasurable period where I could refresh my mind.”
Kallis, who turns 38 on Wednesday, did not watch a ball of cricket in that time. He played a lot of golf, spent time with the family and generally did, what he said, normal people do.
But so ready did he look in the nets and the practice game in Sharjah, Graeme Smith said he felt Kallis had already played a whole season’s worth.
Alongside Hashim Amla and AB de Villiers, Kallis has been at the forefront of South Africa’s successes against spin. They will be tested again; Pakistan might play three spinners if, as Kallis said, the pitch is given to turn.
“As a team, we probably play spin as well as anybody,” he said. “Our record shows that. We’ve done well in the subcontinent for many a year now.
“Our players have good game plans against it and we’ve scored big runs and got good results. The guys are confident going in to play on these wickets.”
Murmurs from the Pakistan camp on Saturday suggested they were unhappy the surface looked a little seam-friendly, but that is unlikely to be the surface’s nature.
Whether or not they play three spinners or two with two fast bowlers, the focus still will be on Saeed Ajmal.
Although he picked up 10 wickets against them in Cape Town earlier this year, Ajmal has struggled against South Africa otherwise; in 132 overs spread across the three remaining Tests, he has only four wickets.
Not that he worries about things like that. Ajmal is too chirpy to let things like the identity of an opponent get in the way of his business of taking wickets.
“It’s nothing different, but I will try my best,” he said. “Every day is a new day for me and every match is a new match. I try my best in every match and want to perform in the same manner as I did in the last one without extra pressure.
“I will go into the Test with 100 per cent confidence. I have only one target and that is to take more and more wickets. Be it Smith or Kallis, I bowl as I bowl.”
In contrast to South Africa, Pakistan have a few decisions to make beyond their bowling attack. They are likely to give a Test debut to the opener Ahmed Shahzad, while they must also decide whether to persist with Asad Shafiq or bring in a left-hander in the middle in Umar Amin.
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21 Lessons for the 21st Century
Yuval Noah Harari, Jonathan Cape
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Dubai Hurricanes 31 Dubai Sports City Eagles 22
Hurricanes
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Cons: Tredray 2, Powell
Eagles
Tries: O’Driscoll 2, Ives
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TO A LAND UNKNOWN
Director: Mahdi Fleifel
Starring: Mahmoud Bakri, Aram Sabbah, Mohammad Alsurafa
Rating: 4.5/5
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MATCH STATS
Wolves 0
Aston Villa 1 (El Ghazi 90 4' pen)
Red cards: Joao Moutinho (Wolves); Douglas Luiz (Aston Villa)
Man of the match: Emi Martinez (Aston Villa)
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Director: Alfonso Cuaron
Stars: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Kline, Lesley Manville
Rating: 4/5
Results:
First Test: New Zealand 30 British & Irish Lions 15
Second Test: New Zealand 21 British & Irish Lions 24
Third Test: New Zealand 15 British & Irish Lions 15
FIGHT CARD
Bantamweight Hamza Bougamza (MAR) v Jalal Al Daaja (JOR)
Catchweight 67kg Mohamed El Mesbahi (MAR) v Fouad Mesdari (ALG)
Lighweight Abdullah Mohammed Ali (UAE) v Abdelhak Amhidra (MAR)
Catchweight 73kg Mostafa Ibrahim Radi (PAL) v Yazid Chouchane (ALG)
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Catchweight 78kg Rashed Dawood (UAE) v Adnan Bushashy (ALG)
Middleweight Sallaheddine Dekhissi (MAR) v Abdel Emam (EGY)
Catchweight 65kg Rachid Hazoume (MAR) v Yanis Ghemmouri (ALG)
Lighweight Mohammed Yahya (UAE) v Azouz Anwar (EGY)
Catchweight 79kg Omar Hussein (PAL) v Souhil Tahiri (ALG)
Middleweight Tarek Suleiman (SYR) v Laid Zerhouni (ALG)
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5pm: Valcartier
5.30pm: AF Taraha
6pm: Dhafra
6.30pm: Maqam
7pm: AF Mekhbat
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RESULTS
Bantamweight title:
Vinicius de Oliveira (BRA) bt Xavier Alaoui (MAR)
(KO round 2)
Catchweight 68kg:
Sean Soriano (USA) bt Noad Lahat (ISR)
(TKO round 1)
Middleweight:
Denis Tiuliulin (RUS) bt Juscelino Ferreira (BRA)
(TKO round 1)
Lightweight:
Anas Siraj Mounir (MAR) bt Joachim Tollefsen (DEN)
(Unanimous decision)
Catchweight 68kg:
Austin Arnett (USA) bt Daniel Vega (MEX)
(TKO round 3)
Lightweight:
Carrington Banks (USA) bt Marcio Andrade (BRA)
(Unanimous decision)
Catchweight 58kg:
Corinne Laframboise (CAN) bt Malin Hermansson (SWE)
(Submission round 2)
Bantamweight:
Jalal Al Daaja (CAN) bt Juares Dea (CMR)
(Split decision)
Middleweight:
Mohamad Osseili (LEB) bt Ivan Slynko (UKR)
(TKO round 1)
Featherweight:
Tarun Grigoryan (ARM) bt Islam Makhamadjanov (UZB)
(Unanimous decision)
Catchweight 54kg:
Mariagiovanna Vai (ITA) bt Daniella Shutov (ISR)
(Submission round 1)
Middleweight:
Joan Arastey (ESP) bt Omran Chaaban (LEB)
(Unanimous decision)
Welterweight:
Bruno Carvalho (POR) bt Souhil Tahiri (ALG)
(TKO)
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8 The Saudi Cup (TB) 1,800m (D) $20,000,000
Match info
Uefa Nations League A Group 4
England 2 (Lingard 78', Kane 85')
Croatia 1 (Kramaric 57')
Man of the match: Harry Kane (England)
Schedule for Asia Cup
Sept 15: Bangladesh v Sri Lanka (Dubai)
Sept 16: Pakistan v Qualifier (Dubai)
Sept 17: Sri Lanka v Afghanistan (Abu Dhabi)
Sept 18: India v Qualifier (Dubai)
Sept 19: India v Pakistan (Dubai)
Sept 20: Bangladesh v Afghanistan (Abu Dhabi) Super Four
Sept 21: Group A Winner v Group B Runner-up (Dubai)
Sept 21: Group B Winner v Group A Runner-up (Abu Dhabi)
Sept 23: Group A Winner v Group A Runner-up (Dubai)
Sept 23: Group B Winner v Group B Runner-up (Abu Dhabi)
Sept 25: Group A Winner v Group B Winner (Dubai)
Sept 26: Group A Runner-up v Group B Runner-up (Abu Dhabi)
Sept 28: Final (Dubai)
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Business Insights
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