It started with fire. On a cold autumn evening, South Africa's Test team sat around the flames at their pre-Tour Bush camp & contemplated how they fell to No. 7 in the Test rankings, their joint-lowest position.
South Africa's Mark Boucher said, "The new captain asked some questions about where we are & where we are going & where we want to be. There was some honest conversation around the South African fires at night." Coach said. "People really bought into a process that he wanted to align his regime with.
"That's what we all stand back & say we're either on the bus or not on the bus. Thankfully everyone decided they were on the bus. And it just doesn't work when you're on the field. So much. The effort has to be put behind closed doors in the way we train, the way we talk, the language, the confidence. Maybe that's where it started. In that fire."
A series win later, it is too early to say what exactly is burning in South Africa's change room, apart from a spark of potential that could light up the rankings at times.
Their win over West Indies was their first Test series success away from home since March 2017, at a time that included two coaches, three captains & a different administration. Since then, South Africa's problems on & off the field have been well documented, with increasing pressure on playing personnel & backroom staff & talk of an irreversible spiral in mediocrity.
Boucher was in the middle of that, a coach under scrutiny for poor results, but it looked like someone was taking the 2-0 result in their stride. "It's not a relief. A lot of hard work has been done behind the scenes," he said. "We were working on some technical things & pushing our players. We understood the need to perform for the Proteas badge & people came & played as a strong team."
What was most striking for Boucher was the way his team handled crucial moments of the game, such as bowling out West Indies for 97 in the first innings of the first Test & 73 for 7 in the second innings of the second Test. Not to be missed as West Indies set a target of 300-plus. "We've talked about playing the big moments better & we have played those big moments really well," he said.
But he was cautious not to read too much into two solid victories, adding that South Africa still needed to be challenged properly before assessing their progress. "I look forward to the time where we come under pressure & to see how we respond as a unit. That's where we can judge where we really are."
Although the West Indies attack challenged South Africa's line-up, the hosts' weak batting meant the match was not as close as Boucher had hoped, but there were still two clear positives for them to pull out of the series. things were.
First, there was the form of former captain Quinton de Kock, who had a rough time during the all-format leadership which was reflected in his numbers. De Kock scored 74 runs in six innings as Test captain against Sri Lanka & Pakistan & was poor throughout. In this series, he led the run charts with 237 runs in two innings & Boucher has reason to believe that he is back at his best.
"Quinney has been going through a tough time of late," Boucher said. "He came into this series without as many runs as he wanted but the way he is hitting the balls in the nets & the way he has been off the field is fantastic.
"His conversation around the changing room is funny & light-hearted & Quinney in that place - it's always going to reflect the way he plays on the field. He got 141 on the second day, it's too slow outfield, which is a 200. The 96 I got was priced at 120-130. That was the X-factor in the whole range. I am very happy that Quiney is in a good place at the moment."
And secondly, Dean Kock's successor is Dean Elgar. Despite scoring no runs & taking no catches in the first Test, Elgar wore the biggest smile & widened it to 77 in the first innings of the second Test. More importantly, from a team perspective, they have sought to excel in the form of five-force & hundreds & have asked South Africa to play what some might call a grinding style of old-fashioned cricket. , which the team bought. this.
"The dean might say it's boring, we say it's disciplined cricket," Boucher said. “The language he is talking in, the players are liking it, it is good for him to bring that kind of language.
"That's what Test cricket is all about - being able to absorb the pressure at certain stages & then apply. People are getting smarter in choosing those moments. It was impressive & it's good to see the leader One is sending a language & people are responding to it."
Importantly, South Africa is responding to unfamiliar conditions. Neither of them had played a series in the Caribbean before & Boucher believes their experience will position them well for future challenges.
"When you have a young team, the best place for them to learn to play cricket is in overseas conditions," he said. "That's how you develop players in different situations, & that's how they learn about their game & little adjustments that can make them world-class players."
South Africa is not under the illusion that they are not there yet. "It's important that we understand that there is a process, a long process that you have to keep working on," Boucher said.
So just the first match is lit & now they have to wait to see if it catches fire.