We won’t allow spinners to dominate

Like a gambler on a very bad night, India has placed all its remaining cash on a single roulette number in order to try and reclaim some of its losses and limit the damage. But if the number doesn't come up then they risk losing the series 2-0. If their gamble succeeds, of course, then they can level the series.

But unlike the spin of a roulette wheel, this gamble is not just about the pitch. It is also about the toss of a coin and about selecting a lopsided bowling attack and backing it, half-injured and inexperienced, to produce a match-winning performance under the greatest pressure.

India, no doubt, will play three spinners. But is Anil Kumble really fit? He didn't look fit in Ahmedabad and there really hasn't been much time in between to recover. Piyush Chawla is an exciting prospect, there's no doubt, but it might be asking a bit much of him.

Ironically enough, one of India's best assets for this Test match is a South African: Gary Kirsten. Gary is probably the best 'bad-wicket batsman' that South Africa has produced since 1991 and he knows only too well how much of the game is played between the ears rather than between the two sets of stumps in adverse conditions.

With the combination of experienced batsmen like Rahul Dravid, Sourav Ganguly and VVS Laxman, combined with Gary's temperament, we are expecting India to put up a far batter showing then they did in Ahmedabad. But I still believe they will need to win the toss and bat first.

As far as our strategy is concerned, we intend to play positive, aggressive cricket. There is no way we will allow the terms and pace of the game to be dictated to us. We will not sit back and allow the spinners to dominate; if the wicket does play poorly, then we will attack and counter-attack to make certain we score quickly, and the same applies with the ball.

But whatever happens, there will be no excuses from our side because, if India win, we know they will have worked exceptionally hard and probably deserve it. They have chosen to add an element of 'lottery' to the Test by ordering this pitch but we accept that. If you are desperate to win then you owe it to your supporters and your countrymen to do whatever you can to win.

The security 'threat' two days before the Test was a concern for the players for a while but the Indian police have done everything possible to reassure us of our safety and I can assure you that we all went to sleep last night with peace of mind.

The greatest goal in sport is not winning, it is consistency. Every professional team and every individual will rather win 10 consecutive games and be consistent, home and away, than win five games 4-0 and lose the other five. If we can win here it will give us five out of five series wins this season, three of them away from home in extremely unfamiliar conditions. We don't need a greater incentive than that, especially with series against England and Australia coming up. (Gameplan)