During the inaugural Titan Cup game between India and South Africa on Thursday, the television camers repeatedly focussed on the South African coach as, for the duration of the match, he sat in the players gallery, laptop in front of him.

Woolmer was seen following the action closely through binoculars, every now and again busily keying in his observations into the computer.

The contents of the gadget are, of course, a close kept secret. But is common knowledge that Woolmer meticulously takes notes of every member of opposing sides - their strengths and weaknesses whether batting, bowling, or fielding.

It is known, too, that these computerised notes play a big part in South Africa's team meetings. Woolmer reads out his observations, the team discusses them, and together, coach and players work out gameplans to tackle each individual member of opposing sides.

South Africa, the latest entrants - make that re-entrants, for the sake of accurancy - have to be credited with taking cricket hi-tech.

Coach Woolmer revealed during Thursday's clash against India that to supplment his notes, the side had also acquired, and studied in depth, video-tapes of India's emerging stars, Ganguly and Dravid, at the batting crease. The Kanpur-born Woolmer said the exercise was aimed at detecting flaws in the techniques of the two batsmen, and working out gameplans for the South African bowlers accordingly.

Given that both Ganguly and Dravid handled the opposing bowlers with confidence and style at the Lal Bahadur Stadium on Thursday before sacrificing their wickets on the altar of panic, this study might appear to be as futile an exercise as then England manager Keith Fletcher's much publicised trip to South Africa to study the Indians just ahead of England's 1993 tour of India. In the event, England lost miserably to the home side, and Feltcher earned ridicule.

However, the South African method appears to have borne some fruit. Throw your mind back a few months, to Sharjah and the Pepsi Cup.

South Africa played India twice in the league phase. On both occasions, the wicket most prized by opposition bowlers - that of Sachin Tendulkar - went cheap.

On both occasions, the triumphant bowler was Fanie de Villiers.

On both occasions, the method of dismissal was the same - de Villiers moved one away from just outside off, giving Sachin Tendulkar the illusion of width. Sachin launched into his favoured short arm pull over wide midwicket. The movement and lift de Villiers gets with the new ball induced, on both occasions, the top edge. And the resultant catch was gratefully pouched by a fielder placed just for that stroke.

This time round, de Villiers in Hyderabad pitched it just short of driving length, angling it into Tendulkar's pads from wide off the crease and bowling, apparently, to Tendulkar's strength the wristy flick-drive off the pads.

In the event, the angle of drift and additional movement off the seam after pitching meant that the flick went straight instead of square - the fielder at close in midwicket didn't even have to straighten from his crouch to pouch the chance.

All three times, the dismissals were the result of careful thought. And equally obviously, the computer - which had recorded Tendulkar's favourite shots, along with his vulnerabilities - had played a part in the dismissal.

And while Woolmer adds to his database with every ball and every stroke, skipper Hansie Cronje in his own way works towards his goal - that of escaping from India with a whole cricketing skin.

``Our ultimate challenge,'' Cronje said during the Titan Cup inaugural in Hyderabad, ``is to do well on Indian pitches, in both the one-dayers and the Tests.''

Cronje's goal stems from the knowledge that throughout the cricketing world, it is acknowledged that one of the hardest assignments is to beat India at home, especially in Test match situations. ``We have a 50-50 chance of beating India in their own backyard in Tests, especially with the present team under its new captain Sachin Tendulkar performing so well,'' said Cronje.

Pointing out that the South Africans had adjusted easily, and quickly, to the quirks of playing on sub-continental wickets when they toured this part of the world for the Wills World Cup earlier this year, Cronje warned, however, that ``Indian Test teams on Indian soil are very hard to beat.

Asked how his side planned to counter India's spin bowlers, Cronje pointed out that ``In Pat Symcox, we have the best off spinner in the world while the best wrist spinner, Paul Adams, will be joining us for the later part of the tour.''

More than individuals, however, Cronje is inclined to pin his faith on his side's greatest strength - namely, its ability to pull together, and always give more than the sum total of its parts.

``Team spirit is very high now,'' Cronje said. ``Our boys are looking forward to the three-Test series against India on Indian soil, which we know will be close.''