"If there's ever a place to play like that it's probably Pakistan," he said, quickly remembering that South Africa did not bat like that when they toured there in early 2021. "And then you are going to follow up with a question of why didn't we play like that when we were there. But if you look at the English side, they have been very vocal in terms of they are going to back their guys, even through a few failures. They are out of the World Test Championship (WTC) for this run so it's almost a nothing-to-lose type of game that they can play."

They have played on slow surfaces in the West Indies, and seamer-friendly pitches at home, in New Zealand and in England, where they suffered their only series loss. The 2-1 defeat is where van der Dussen believes his point was best proved: England's ultra-aggressive approach only works if the quick bowlers can't get into the game.

"People like seeing that - a lot of shots and a lot of runs - but the purist and the real Test fan likes it when the balance is even between bat and ball and the bowlers are in the game as much as the batters."

"We are not looking for excuses. We want to get more hundreds and more partnerships and score a lot more runs individually," he said. "But if we can bat as a unit, and get our team across the line, that's the main thing."

But what about the entertainment value?

McCullum and Stokes have taken the approach that more proactive batting will put bums on seats and eyeballs on screens. Asked if he thinks that is the case, van der Dussen stuck to his stoicism.

"I prefer the cat and mouse," he said. "We played against the England Lions in Kent and they played the same way. It was a very flat and tame wicket that they prepared and the guys came out swinging. At the end of the day, you say well played but this is not the Test wickets we are used to. A week later we were at Lord's and it was going around and the bowlers were much more in the game. That's where the real quality batters will come to the fore - the guys who are disciplined in that fourth-stump channel, who can judge the length, who can play the short ball - short ball that can actually come up to head height and not just shoulder height. There needs to be some sort of risk element involved in batting."

And he hopes fans will agree. "People like seeing that - a lot of shots and a lot of runs - but the purist and the real Test fan likes it when the balance is even between bat and ball and the bowlers are in the game as much as the batters."