
You can never truly write off South Africa in a Test match, but their chances of avoiding defeat to Australia in the third and final Test at the SCG look incredibly slim.
Australia's Test side returned to action recently with a 2-0 series victory over West Indies in early December and they now turn their attention to an intriguing three-match tussle with South Africa.
As part of his bi-weekly column for bet365, former England batter Ian Bell shares his thoughts on the recent T20 series with South Africa, the upcoming Test series, what he expects from Zak Crawley and Alex Lees, the form of Jonny Bairstow, this year's iteration of The Hundred, and Aston Villa's opening day defeat to Bournemouth.
England suffered their first Test defeat of the Brendon McCullum/Ben Stokes era last time out against South Africa and will be after an immediate response in the second game of the three-match series at Old Trafford.
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