Amla aims to be positive

Fresh from a maiden Test century at Cape Town, Hashim Amla told reporters before the third and final Test against New Zealand at the Wanderers that his team will be doing everything it can to win the match and secure the series.

South Africa already lead the series 1-0 but Amla said: "Our first objective is to win. If you go out just looking for a draw, you can very easily land yourself in hot water. So we will be playing positive cricket, which has been the team's motto, and we are hoping to come away with a two-nil series win."

The Test will be Amla's first at the magnificent Wanderers ground and he is excited by the prospect of playing there. "It's a fantastic thought," he said. "It's known as the Bullring, and there's a fantastic atmosphere. The outfield is always 'blitz-vinnig' and it's great for batting if you can get in, and I'm really looking forward to it."

Concern has been expressed at the conditions at this time of the year in South Africa, well beyond when its regular cricket season generally ends. Time was lost in the second Test due to fog and Johannesburg has greeted both teams with chilly weather. Amla, though, thought the cold might suit the visitors more. "I think their guys might be a bit more used to it than we are. I went to New Zealand a couple of years ago, and it was exactly like this. But you play in whatever conditions you get."

Amla wasn't the only one in a positive frame of mind; James Franklin, who also scored a maiden century last week, reiterated the obvious that New Zealand would also be playing to win the last Test. New Zealand's situation, unlike South Africa's, is borne of necessity as they need to win to level the series.

"We're very confident that we can win this one. Obviously the pitch in Cape Town didn't do quite what we expected it to, but we believe the two teams are very close," said Franklin. However, he dismissed talk that conditions would suit his side better. "It's pretty cold here at the moment. There've been a few jibes that these are New Zealand conditions, but it does get warm there sometimes.

"We'll just have to see what the conditions are like and take it from there. Any international cricketer has to adjust to conditions and play the game from there. But we are hoping it will warm up a bit - it's pretty nippy, and all cricketers like playing in warm weather."

How the conditions are likely to affect the pitch nobody is sure just yet though both sides will hope that a more even contest between bat and ball awaits them. Bowlers dominated the first Test and batsmen the second so halfway between the two will suit everyone. The New Zealand Herald reported that Chris Scott, the local curator, has spent 10 days - twice as long as usual - to prepare a suitable wicket.

Because of the chilly weather and lack of sunlight, Scott has been forced to use gas heaters to dry out the pitch, which is already enclosed in a tent, in a bid to artificially replicate a warmer climate. Scott, who has prepared the Wanderers for 32 years, said "In a nutshell, I'm trying to prepare a wicket in between Centurion and Newlands. I don't want a flat pitch or one that does too much but the weather hasn't made it easy. Pace and bounce is important at the Wanderers but the conditions at this time of year aren't conducive to hard wickets. You can do as much rolling as you want but you still need the sun to bake down on the pitch (to make it firm)." The wicket, he said, was 90% ready.

Though it is not the strip on which South Africa chased Australia's 434 with their own record-breaking effort in March, it has a recent history of run-making. The strip was last used in January for two domestic one-day games that produced an aggregate of over a thousand runs. Chris Martin, after inspecting the pitch, told the newspaper there was some reason to be optimistic as a fast bowler. "There's going to be a little bit of moisture so it should be good (bowling) for the first day or so."