![](https://syndicates.s3.amazonaws.com/aap/Cri_Aust_SAfrica_4-3_23525752_2135191_202212151612420e9deef-fe8b-4eb4-b433-0c4a97cd3cc2_sd_800x600.jpg)
As South Africa mull over whether to play five specialist bowlers in the first Test at the Gabba, interim coach Malibongwe Maketa has suggested giant left-armer Marco Jansen could have a crucial role to play in the makeup of the team this series.
Maketa lit up his first press conference in Brisbane when he said that his pace attack would not be deluded into bowling too short and getting carried away with the "sexy bounce" that was on offer at the Gabba.
The 206cm tall Jansen should have no problem in that department. From a good length he is capable of generating significant lift just due to his height.
It is with the bat, possibly as high as number seven, that Jansen would need to contribute to ensure the Proteas make totals of 350-plus. At Lord's in the side's Test win over England this year he made an accomplished 48.
"We are growing him in terms of his all-round ability and he has got the ability to do something special with the bat," Maketa said.
"From that point of view he is a work in progress and he is capable of being part of at least two fifty partnerships in terms of the way we go about things."
Jansen, 22, has taken 32 Test wickets at an average of 17.62 this calendar year. Maketa said he was "very excited" about what was to come.
"It has been a sharp rise and we know for a fact that people around the world have taken note. People have seen enough of him to come up with different plans," he said.
"When it comes to his performances we are very pleased because he gives us the variety we need. In terms of pace, height and the areas he hits it sets him apart from other left-armers".
Pace spearhead Kagiso Rabada played a key role in the Proteas' 2-1 series win in Australia in 2016-17 and Maketa said his wisdom had been crucial in advising his bowlers not to bowl too short on this tour.
"If you look at the Wanderers it offers the same more or less where you can get carried away with the sexy bounce and be ineffective," he said.
"So we have been working hard on making sure we hit the fuller length and make the batter play."
Rabada, Lungi Ngidi and Anrich Nortje are the right-arm pace bowlers likely to line up at the Gabba with Keshav Maharaj the spin option.
Maketa said a decision on whether to go with five bowlers would be made closer to the start of the Test, which begins on Saturday.
"For me Test cricket really boils down to who can get the twenty wickets. I think the bowlers are going to play a big role in deciding which way this series goes," he said.