The spearhead of the New Zealand pace attack, who rejoins the New Zealand side for the test series which begins at the University Oval on Wednesday, said he had not spent a lot of time studying the current South African side.
It was more about the past than the present for the veteran right-armer.
"I think it is more of looking back at how I have played against them in the past," Martin said in Dunedin last night.
"I think that will bring some good memories and positive vibes. I think the actual upcoming series is more about revisiting those memories and putting on a pretty good show for the public."
Martin can reminisce about being part of one of the better New Zealand efforts against South Africa.
He took 11 wickets in a test against the Proteas in 2004 at Eden Park, which led the Black Caps to victory. He also made his test debut against South Africa, in 2000, in Bloemfontein.
Swing, especially against left-handers, was a key for Martin and that helped in a four-pronged pace attack, which New Zealand is likely to take into the test on Wednesday.
"The balance is there to test quite a few techniques and if you put Daniel [Vettori] into the mix, that covers a lot of the bases which South Africa also cover. It should be a pretty challenging series for batsmen."
Martin said he was still swinging the ball well and the test was likely to be a battle between swing bowlers.
But no matter how much movement is in the pitch, the New Zealand side will not be high on confidence, after losing its last five matches in both twenty/20 and one day internationals against the South Africans.
Martin, though, is confident his team-mates will bounce back quickly.
"There will be a little bit of reinvigoration over the next few days. The way professional cricket is these days, the guys are pretty good at getting over disappointment in one form of the game and moving on to the next.
With the right handling over the next few days, we can go into the series feeling confident.
"I think wounded is a pretty strong term. Just had probably some lapses over last two week. Those sort of lapses you can't take into the test series. Improvements need to be made pretty quickly."
Martin had just been at the University Oval, playing for Auckland in the Plunket Shield last month.
He found a good bowler's wicket there but was not expecting more of the same.
"I think there will be a little bit around. Any moisture in the air and weatherwise, the pitch will always have a little bit of something in it. The amount of movement you get in a first class game won't be there for this game. It will be a seamer's wicket and if the conditions are right, [it] will swing as well."
