South Africa press for clean sweep against Pakistan

Centurion, Feb 21 (AFP) South Africa will press for a clean sweep when they meet Pakistan in the third and final Test starting at SuperSport Park on Friday.
After a comfortable 211-run win in the first Test in Johannesburg, South Africa were made to work hard before clinching the series with a four-wicket win in the second Test at Newlands in Cape Town.
The second victory was achieved on a surface which captain Graeme Smith said did not suit his team, whose bowling attack is based on world-class fast bowlers.
Centurion has traditionally favoured fast bowlers and the South Africans will feel confident they can prevail again in conditions more familiar than those in which Pakistan off-spinner Saeed Ajmal took 10 wickets in Cape Town.
 

Coach Gary Kirsten told a South African website that the hosts wanted a pitch that was more seam friendly than Newlands.

"We just don't want a pitch that turns a lot," he said.
Smith has been racking up captaincy records during the series, notching 100 Test captaincies in Johannesburg and a record 49th win as captain in Cape Town.
Under his leadership, South Africa have won 21 series -- but none of them has featured a clean sweep in a series of three or more matches.
With South Africa firmly entrenched as the number one team in the International Cricket Council rankings, players and management frequently talk of creating a legacy -- and maintaining standards after a series has been won is one way of doing that.