Australia vs South Africa 1st Test Live Cricket Score, AUS vs SA

South Africa Tour of Australia 2012 1st Test Match Live Score.
Another enthralling battle for Test supremacy begins as hosts Australia look to wrestle for the Test crown mace with South Africa when both renew their cricketing rivalry at the Brisbane Cricket Ground, commonly known as Gabba.

Click here for Australia vs South Africa 1st Test Live Cricket Score.

While any encounter involving the two powerhouses is eagerly anticipated, the ‘small matter’ of the no.1 glory attached to the upcoming bouts has given the series added weightage, and a perfect platform for the longer version to flourish in presence of continuous T20 cricket.

For starters, a three-match series is a welcoming prospect, allowing both sides a fair crack at each other as opposed to the short two-match contest both played last year, which according to Dale Steyn, was 'like the first two rounds of a boxing match, two heavyweights. Just as soon as we found our feet the Aussies were on their way home'.

Despite that series ending in a stalemate, it was a chaotic affair for the Aussies, who were at the peak of a rebuilding process under new skipper Michael Clarke. The Argus review had left them in disarray, and constant chopping and changing in the coaching staff had further put the players under severe pressure and their leader, mentally drained.  

Although it ultimately worked for the greater good of the team, which then embarked on an impressive unbeaten Test run, it certainly was a rude awakening for the once dominant Test cricketing nation.

Having come out of that trauma, they are now better placed to have a crack at the newly crowned Test no.1 side. The hosts begin the upcoming home summer knowing that a series win will show that their hard work in the last 12 months has indeed paid off, and more importantly, will be a major coup for Cricket Australia, which was forced to overhaul its structure in the wake of back-to-back Ashes defeats.

Their preparations have suffered in the lead up to the home summer, with injuries and lack of runs for many of the Test specialists. Their players last played a competitive Test in April, before embarking on their T20 adventures. An appearance in the Champions League T20 followed, leaving many with little red-ball practice.

Shane Watson and Pat Cummins again found themselves out of the home summer, at least for the initial phase, while question marks remains over the ability of Ed Cowan and Nathan Lyon. On the brighter side, Ricky Ponting’s form will be a major boost for the team, where he has topped the domestic tally, averaging over 100.

Rob Quiney’s inclusion as a shadow player for Watson provides the team potency in the batting lineup; whereas the fast bowling department is looking good in the presence of Peter Siddle and James Pattinson. Their transformation under Clarke nonetheless, will be tested when they face a confident Proteas lineup.

The touring party is well blessed in all departments of the game, and remains much settled. Their batsmen have piled runs wherever they have played in the past year, which included an impressive outing against England in July-August, while their bowlers are widely regarded as currently the best.

Dale Steyn remains their leader, and his support staff is also pretty daunting. Vernon Philander burst onto the scene against the Aussies last year and has not looked back since. Morne Morkel has further established himself as a reliable campaigner and will be geared up to emulate his form of the past couple of months.

More importantly, the tracks Down Under are tailor-made for their style of bowling and it all adds up to an enthralling contest between bat and ball. Like the Aussies, South Africa is short of quality in the spin department, but in Imran Tahir, they have a wicket-taking option.

A lot has been talked about how the Gabba track will behave, with many predicting it to assist the spinners in the final two days. However, the last match on that ground, between Australia and New Zealand, ended in just a touch over 4 days. Rain is expected to play a part.