Melbourne, Dec. 10 : Former South African off-spinner Pat Symcox has criticized the current team's moves to excessively talk about their talent and skills ahead of their cricket series against Australia as pathetic.

Symcox insisted that the Proteas are living in false hope by believing that their recent 2-0 Test series romp over minnows Bangladesh is an adequate form line for tangling with Australia, the current world champions.

"To believe that South Africa are now well prepared to take on the Aussies after a convincing win at home against Bangladesh is naive in the extreme," the Courier Mail quoted Symcox, as saying.

"Bangladesh would battle to beat my local ski boat club on a bad day. To hear players and coaches stating how well they played against these palookas is really pathetic. One has to question how much longer these farcical adventures can be allowed to continue," he added in his column for South Africa''s Independent newspaper.

He also questioned the Proteas'' hyped fast bowling battery and claimed star all-rounder Jacques Kallis had "lost his way" with the bat.

He described Kallis, a notoriously slow starter, who would be ripe picking for rejuvenated Australian spearhead Brett Lee.

"Too many times Steyn and Ntini have wasted the new ball opportunity and allowed opposing batsmen to settle. They need to hit their lengths early. Shaun Pollock did that better than anyone in the world, but he is no longer there, " Symcox''s said.

His comments won't go down well in a South African camp that finally believes it can beat Australia after eight failed Test series dating back to 1910. (ANI)