The other curious issue concerns definitions and whether the most in-form batsman currently can be called so! By consensus, nobody batted better in Potchefstroom than Irfan Pathan did. Had a batsman scored a century and a 40, he would have been among the first to be picked but is Pathan a batsman? Are we losing sleep over semantics?

But since Pathan is classified as a bowler who lends weight with the bat, his performance last week may not be enough to win him a place in the side. Powerful character roles in the past have tended to get ignored in the best actor category. And so India will go in with their best six designated batsmen and four bowlers. It is also an admission that Dhoni is not yet ready to bat at No 6 in a Test match.

Clearly it is a question of mindset. You could call it being defensive, cautious, maybe even realistic. India’s batting in the one-dayers has been pathetic and while it is not always the best option to draw parallels from one form of the game into another, it is currently difficult to pinpoint one player who will stand up and be the inspiration that India need.

A pair of battling openers might have been the solution. On the few occasions that India have played well overseas, they have had solid starts. Here in South Africa the two men assigned that job are, ironically, the two batsmen who are struggling the most. 20 for 2 on the first morning and it will be like the reprint of a popular paperback. Notice how defensive even the writer gets but that is the air everyone here in Johannesburg breathes. I fear a self-fulfilling prophecy is on the way.

If, however, India’s top three can blunt the opposition, then the rest chip in with runs, it will be interesting to watch South Africa go about a situation that I suspect even they wouldn’t have spent too much time over. South Africa are currently sixth in the world standings and while that could be the effect of playing a lot of away Tests, it is also an illustration of the fact that they aren’t the best batting line-up in the world.

On current form, South Africa have one world class batsman in Jacques Kallis and two others who on their day could fit into that category. But Graeme Smith is in indifferent form and Herschelle Gibbs is a little too volatile to slot anywhere. It is the right move to ask him to open the batting, even if that might be hard on young de Villiers for if Gibbs has the right kind of day, he can dictate the course of a match very quickly.

There is little doubt that each of the three Test match pitches will encourage fast bowlers. And that there won’t be a spinner in South African colours in this series. They are like a pin in a haystack here and nobody is even bothering to put a finger into that haystack. Strangely, that might present India with an opportunity at some point should the pitches start to dry a bit, for South Africa do not bat well against spin. Anil Kumble is in good form and if Harbhajan Singh can put that morose look away and have a decent conversation with the ball, India might have options that South Africa won’t like.

That leaves the one question that could have a bearing on the series. What is going through Sachin Tendulkar’s mind? Great players do not take kindly to bad patches, nobody does for that matter, but when supreme confidence is replaced by indecision, the coat of brilliance looks thinner. I would venture to say that it is in the state of Rahul Dravid’s finger and Sachin Tendulkar’s mind that India’s chances in this series lie.