Aus aim to acclimatise

Sydney to Potchefstroom in less than 48 hours. That was the whirlwind trip that greeted those members of Australia's Twenty20 side which beat New Zealand at the SCG on Sunday and were then required for the tour of South Africa. As preparation for a crucial Test series goes it's not ideal, so Australia's only warm-up game ahead of the first Test in Johannesburg will be a vital step as they aim to cling on to the No. 1 ranking that they now hold by their fingernails.
Brad Haddin, Peter Siddle and Ben Hilfenhaus were the lucky ones who made the mad rush from Sydney, although several others had only a couple of extra days' break after wrapping up the Chappell-Hadlee Trophy on Friday. The opener Simon Katich has spent the past month working on his game at state level, having not been picked in the ODI side, and he said the three-day match in Potchefstroom would be especially valuable for the limited-overs players.