“They don't give you any easy shots early on, so you [have to] work hard to make sure you get to 50, 60-plus balls, and then maybe you might find the runs a little bit easier,” he said.
The Proteas will also be looking to carry the discipline shown by captain Temba Bavuma in Gqeberha into Newlands, where the conditions could again reward the bowlers.
Rickelton, who has moved into the middle-order, said the responsibility at No 5 was to make the most of the platform created by the top order.
“The top three are doing the hard work, putting overs under the belt and taking the [effect of the] new ball away,” he said.
“It's the middle-order's job to continue to work hard and score runs, to cash in on the work done by the top three.”
The wicketkeeping role has also given Rickelton another way to remain involved, a responsibility he has enjoyed.
“That's what I've done growing up, keeping and batting in the middle-order, so I really enjoyed that, just being locked in every single ball,” he said.
The Proteas’ bowling attack, meanwhile, has been boosted by the return of Kagiso Rabada, whose presence has allowed Marco Jansen to express himself more freely after carrying the responsibility of leading the attack in the first Test, Rickelton says.
He said Rabada’s competitive edge had helped bring an added intensity to the group.
“It's never anything aggressive. It's just pure competitiveness from Rabada, and I think Jansen gets up for it as well, and that gets the boys going,” he said.
That intensity could prove important against Australia, particularly with Jansen likely to renew his own rivalry with Marnus Labuschagne.
“We know the value of getting him out early,” Rickelton said.
“If he turns the wheel around, obviously we're going to bear the brunt of it.”
With a full home summer ahead, Rickelton knows there is little value in looking too far beyond Newlands.
“We've got a job to do,” he said.
“We've got to keep being consistent in the way that we approach these games.”
