Does size matter? Not if it’s Ajit Agarkar

"Aayxcuse me" a voice rings out and I know instinctively it comes from Durban or Johannesburg not London or Manchester. It belo...

"Aayxcuse me" a voice rings out and I know instinctively it comes from Durban or Johannesburg not London or Manchester. It belongs to a photographer carrying a lens that looks like a cannon from the fort at Gwalior. He wants me to help him identify Ajit Agarkar and so worried is he about missing out on the photograph that he stands like a sentry, only loosening his vigil when Sachin Tendulkar passes by.

Duly, Agarkar emerges and is copiously photographed. As he heads off for a workout, I run into old friends from South Africa broadcasters Gerald de Kock and Neil Manthorp and Peter Robinson, the journalist from Durban. “Which of your boys is Agarkar?” they ask. It is almost like the Indian paceman has a ticket someone is chasing! “No, no, no not him. It’s the fast bowler we are looking for", they say when I point him out. Obviously, none of them have seen him bowl but they have been captivated by the fact that he has so many wickets so early in his career. And on Sky TV a couple of days ago, they heardMichael Holding say that he is the player who will surprise many.

It is nice to see the South Africans on a cricket ground because outside the sub-continent, it is only there that a similar passion exists; not in the same numbers maybe but in equal intensity. Allan Donald was saying how they have had the biggest send-off ever and with a twinkle in those most expressive eyes, he said: “Maybe we’ll get a house or two if we win."

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When you see the South Africans and talk to them, you realise that a World Cup is indeed on because there is no sign of it anywhere else. They look like a mean team and if they play as well as they can, they seem invincible. When it comes to the one-day game they are the best and they know it. Not surprisingly, Bob Woolmer, who has put on no weight at all since visiting India in early 1997, says: “We are not bothered by anyone." It is a statement that could be construed either as confidence or arrogance and to be honest, it is probably a bit of both.

“We don’t think aboutother teams," Hansie Cronje said and though he did supplement that by a slightly more mundane “we just try and play to the best of our ability" it was another clue to the confidence they carry with them.

Bob Woolmer isn’t going to be around for too much longer and it is an open secret that England are going to do everything possible to grab him immediately after their tour of South Africa this winter. But I find it so beautiful that with the decision made and announced, with his successor, Graham Ford, on this tour as well, the bond between him and his team is as strong as ever. “We want to win this for him", Jonty Rhodes said. “He has been a fantastic coach for the last five years".

And Hansie Cronje says almost the same thing in almost the same words. I wonder, like they resemble each other on the field, have they started resembling each other in choice of words as well! Allan Donald though, would much rather temper his huge confidence with the awareness that the opponent could spring a surprise ortwo. “India have such an experienced batting line-up with Azhar, Dravid, Ganguly and Jadeja… They can seem to be just around picking up singles and suddenly turn it on with some big ones. And Sachin Tendulkar is simply the best batsman I have ever seen. The balance of his body when he plays his shots in unbelievable. But then…" and he pauses as if to achieve effect "he hasn’t looked too confident in the warm-up games. Maybe we will have an early chance!" Then came the guffaw. It was hope speaking. Donald vs Tendulkar. The key to that encounter might be the key to South Africa vs India.