Interim Proteas head coach Malibongwe Maketa says he has a “strong” relationship with Test captain Dean Elgar.
Maketa took charge of the team following Mark Boucher’s resignation and will start his tenure with a tough three-Test series in Australia, which begins in Brisbane on 17 December.
“It is quite exciting to get the opportunity to work with Dean,” he said. “I have worked with him, obviously not in the same capacity, and our relationship is strong. And it’s really based on hard work so we’re quite similar in a sense in terms of what we’re looking for in terms of the team and the performance itself.
“Like I said when I joined the team, I’m here to support Dean in every way. So it has been a nice start to our journey so far.”
Maketa is regarded as a calm-natured coach.
“For me, the most important thing is knowing that the only way I can impact the game is through preparation,” he said. “I know the guys are not liking me in the sense that I’ve put them through some really tough sessions!
“Once the game starts, I hand over [to the captain] and the biggest thing then is how we support the players as a coaching staff and consistently asking ourselves questions on how we can turn the game around or how can we stay ahead in the game, giving that information to the players and Dean and making sure we support them.”
The Proteas will go into the series ranked second on the ICC World Test Championship table and hoping for some good results in order to maintain their hopes of reaching the final in London next June.
It will be the first time South Africa play red-ball cricket since their 2-1 series defeat during a tour to England earlier this year.
They are also playing in a country where they have a strong history of challenging the hosts in the five-day game and Maketa says he expects things to be no different this time.
“History tells us there is drama when these two teams meet. But for us mentally it’s all about cricket and what is required for us to come here and win. That’s been the driving force for us, whatever comes up we’ve got enough personnel and support for team to make sure we deal with whatever we might encounter.”
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Maketa says the Proteas have been acclimatising well to conditions in Brisbane following their arrival over the weekend.
The tour will begin with a four-day warm-up fixture against a Cricket Australia XI starting on Friday.
“It won’t be a first-class game so it will work in our favour that we can hopefully give all our batters a chance to bat and our bowlers we can monitor them because we’ve gone hard for the first three days that we’ve been here,” Maketa said.
“It is important for us. Luckily some of our guys are coming off some big performances back home but getting here and being exposed to the wickets means this game is very crucial for each and every one of us from that point of view.”
