Proteas seamer Dane Paterson has played seven Tests in four years.
Four years separated his first Test in 2020 and his second in 2024.
Paterson played five County Championship fixtures for Middlesex this year – and has other experience of conditions in England with Nottinghamshire.
He has been named in South Africa’s squad for this month’s World Test Championship final against Australia at Lord’s.
“Paterson’s got a lot of knowledge now, having spent quite a few months here. So batters are tapping into him from how the bowlers try to structure their bowls from certain ends and stuff like that with the slope,” said Proteas batsman Aiden Markram.
“And obviously the bowlers are chatting amongst each other about if the slope makes a difference and if so, how it make a difference and all those sorts of things. So yeah, he’ll be our banker in terms of knowledge and guys will certainly be tapping into him throughout the Test match.”
Whether Paterson is named in the playing XI remains in the balance.
“To be honest, I never thought I was going to get this opportunity again at my age, so I was very happy. And I just tried to take it with both hands,” said the 36-year-old Paterson.
Former Proteas seamer Vernon Philander said: “Paterson is going to be key for me. Lord’s has a slope, so there will be natural variation in the surface, and for a bowler of his kind of pace, batters always feel that they need to play them and they very often get dragged into playing at balls that they don’t have to.”
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