Kirsten believes South Africa will stay atop the rankings if they continue playing at their current level

South Africa coach Gary Kirsten has hailed the national team for their ‘incredible year’ and stated that retaining their world number Test team ranking by defeating Australia in front of their fans was the icing on the cake.

All in all, South Africa won a Test series at home against Sri Lanka before going on to win a hat-trick of tours abroad, with the first coming against New Zealand, the second against England, where they were crowned as the new number one Test team, and finally ending with a 1-0 win over the Australians.

“It’s been an incredible year,” Sports24 quoted Kirsten as saying. “We set our sights on becoming the No 1 team in the world and then to hold that position.”

Kirsten noted that the team were on the path to create an outstanding legacy and should not be underestimated by any of the other cricketing nations.

“They’re a very mature bunch of individuals and play for each other,” Kirsten added. “They play for the (South African) badge in a way I’ve never seen before.”