JOHANNESBURG (AFP)
With South African captain Shaun Pollock a doubtful starter because of a side strain, Australia will be favourites to continue their domination over South Africa in the first of three Tests which starts at the Wanderers Stadium on Friday (Feb 22).

The Australians arrived in Johannesburg on Wednesday after an impressive warm-up match against South Africa A in Potchefstroom. Opening bowler Glenn McGrath, one of the stars of Australia's 3-0 clean sweep when the two sides met earlier in the season, tuned up by taking five wickets against the South African second string. The Australians were also buoyed by centuries by Test captain Steve Waugh and new one-day captain Ricky Ponting, two batsmen who performed moderately in the home series.

Although Australia won the series in Australia in overwhelming fashion, the official world Test championship will again be at stake, with South Africa, because of their superior record against other countries, needing only to share the series to take the title. Australia cannot improve their points position because they are defending the championship points they gained when they beat South Africa by two Tests to one in a series in South Africa five seasons ago. The 1996/97 triumph included an innings win in Johannesburg when Steve Waugh and Greg Blewett shared a fifth-wicket record stand of 385.

The tourists can expect the Wanderers pitch to be different to the lifeless surface they played on five years ago. Former South African player Alan Kourie, director of cricket at the Gauteng cricket board, which hosts the game, said it would be more like a "traditional" Wanderers pitch. "There will be good pace and bounce, with a bit of early life on the first two days, and some help for the spinners by about the fourth afternoon," said Kourie.

South Africa's pace bowlers were surprisingly ineffective in Australia, where the pitches gave them virtually no assistance. Pollock is a key member of the South African attack and if he fails a fitness Test on Thursday it will leave a big gap in the South African team. Allan Donald, South Africas all-time leading wicket-taker, will carry a big responsibility although at the age of 35 he has struggled to produce his best in recent seasons. He had a disappointing series in Australia, where he was recovering from injuries.

The recalled Makhaya Ntini was dropped during the series in Australia but made a strong comeback in helping South Africa win the subsequent VB Series one-day competition. Ntini confirmed his form by taking 6 for 37 in a provincial match last weekend, including a hat-trick.

The fiery Andre Nel, who bowled impressively without taking any wickets for South Africa A in Potchefstroom, is on standby for Pollock, while wicketkeeper Mark Boucher would take over as captain.

Australia' prolific opening batsmen, Justin Langer and Matthew Hayden, will look to continue the form they showed in Australia where they had first innings stands of 80, 202 and 219. By contrast, the South African openers, Gary Kirsten and Herschelle Gibbs, struggled against Australia' high-quality bowlers and will need to be in top form to establish a platform for a largely inexperienced middle order.

A key player for South Africa is likely to be world-class allrounder Jacques Kallis.

Teams: South Africa (probable): 1 Herschelle Gibbs, 2 Gary Kirsten, 3 Jacques Kallis, 4 Neil McKenzie, 5 Boeta Dippenaar, 6 Justin Ontong, 7 Shaun Pollock (capt) or Andre Nel, 8 Mark Boucher (wk), 9 Nicky Boje, 10 Allan Donald, 11 Makhaya Ntini.

Australia (probable): 1 Justin Langer, 2 Matthew Hayden, 3 Ricky Ponting, 4 Mark Waugh, 5 Steve Waugh (capt), 6 Damien Martyn, 7 Adam Gilchrist (wk), 8 Shane Warne, 9 Brett Lee, 10 Jason Gillespie, 11 Glenn McGrath.

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