Perfect pitch will favour Steyn

28 February 2012 - 02:10 By ANDRE VAN DER ZWANin Napier
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Napier groundsman Phil Stoyanoff believes Dale Steyn will bowl up a storm on the green top pitch when the Proteas play the Black Caps tomorrow Picture: HAGEN HOPKINS/GALLO IMAGES
Napier groundsman Phil Stoyanoff believes Dale Steyn will bowl up a storm on the green top pitch when the Proteas play the Black Caps tomorrow Picture: HAGEN HOPKINS/GALLO IMAGES

The real value of Dale Steyn's bowling last Saturday may have been overlooked as South Africa's splendid batting carried them to a comprehensive victory over New Zealand in the first of three one-day internationals.

Tomorrow, the Proteas fast bowler could come into his own again on a pitch here at McLean Park that will suit him.

At least that's what groundsman Phil Stoyanoff believes.

Stoyanoff, a former New Zealand under-23 fast bowler who has been preparing pitches at this ground for the past 14 years, said he has a strip for tomorrow's game that will have pace and bounce. As a self-confessed Steyn admirer, he believes it will be tailor-made for the Proteas quick.

"It's a juicy pitch. We are close to the sea. In fact we are below sea level here, giving us a green top. I can't wait to see Steyn in action here," said Stoyanoff, who added that the surface would be fair to bat and ball.

The curator, who has a reputation for producing some of the best cricket pitches in New Zealand, said he refuses to doctor his pitches.

"We always get good scores at McLean Park. In one ODI we had an innings score of 340. Two years ago, New Zealand scored 600 against India on my green top. If the sun shines the pitch will have more grass than normal."

Stoyanoff said Steyn "will love this pitch". In March 2005, when Brett Lee was at his peak, the Aussie quick reached a speed of 161.4km/h during a T20 international in Napier.

It will be more Steyn's swing that could give the Black Caps problems here than sheer speed. Last Saturday, playing his first game in six weeks, Steyn hardly looked as if he'd been out of the game so long.

It is unusual for a fast bowler to get into the groove as quickly as Steyn did on Saturday, but right from his first ball it was clear he would give the Kiwis problems.

Rob Nicol did not have a clue to a Steyn opener that, apart from good pace, angled in at his off stump and left the opening batsman late. Though Nicol took three fours off Steyn's first three overs, the fast bowler had the better of the batsman for most of their duel, especially with his wicked away swing.

The speed - he reached 144km/h - and swing made Steyn a crucial part of the South African attack, especially in restricting the Black Caps in the batting power play and in the closing overs. In the 47th and 49th overs of the game, Steyn took 1/7. It played a key role in restricting the Kiwis to 253, a score that was at least 30 runs too few to make a game of it as the Proteas won with 26 balls to spare.

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