South Africa will fancy their chances in India: Paul Adams

Some people called him a 'frog in a blender', others an 'insect', but Paul Adams probably was the first in the long line of 'mystery' spinners seen in modern cricket. The middle-name of the South African chinaman bowler was 'Gogga', which in Afrikaans means a 'gnat-like insect'. The 38-year-old went on to represent the Proteas in 45 Tests and picked up 134 scalps with his unique 'twirling' action. Adams is now head coach of the Cape Cobras franchise back in Cape Town, which boasts a star-studded line-up featuring SA skipper Hashim Amla and pace spearhead Dale Steyn. The former spinner spoke to TOI from his home in Cape Town about South Africa's upcoming tour of India. Excerpts ...

South Africa are set to embark on their longest tour of India. How do you see the series panning out?I think it is going to be a very interesting series. India and South Africa have always competed well and we'll definitely have a hardfought four-match Test series. South Africa have done well all around the world and going by the strength of the side this time around, they'll fancy their chances in India as well.

South Africa have picked three spinners for the Test series. What will be the composition of the side?The team has generally relied on their seamers to do most of the damage, even in the subcontinent. With JP Duminy returning to the side, they have some spin options as Dean Elgar can also bowl some leftarm spin. They have picked three spinners (Imran Tahir, Dane Piedt and Simon Harmer) in the squad but I think they'll opt to play with three seamers and bat deep in the Tests.

Imran Tahir has been playing for South Africa for a few years now but why hasn't he managed to secure a regular berth in the Test side?The problem with Tahir is his inconsistency in Test cricket. He bowls a couple of boundary balls every over, which takes away the pressure from the opposition. Tahir needs to tighten up to be successful in Test cricket and learn to bowl in the right areas.

You were probably the first 'mystery' spinner in modern cricket. What's key to being successful?I think spinners need consistency more than mystery. Being a mystery spinner is all right, but without consistency it's difficult to survive in international cricket. I had an unusual action and probably struggled to maintain good lines because of it. The only way a spinner can succeed is to keep the batsman guessing and dry up his scoring options. We have some good spinners around the world like (Nathan) Lyon in Australia and (Ravichandran) Ashwin, so slow bowling is in good hands at the moment.

Ashwin had a phenomenal series against Sri Lanka recently. Do you think he will be the biggest threat for the South African batsmen?Ashwin's biggest strengths is his control over his line. With some changes in his action, he has tightened up his bowling a lot. The lines he bowled in the series against Sri Lanka were one of the biggest reasons of his success because it was a wicket-taking line, not a defensive one. India will probably have (Amit) Mishra and Harbhajan (Singh) in their lineup too. Amla & Co should be prepared for a severe examination against spin.