Cape Town – The appointment of Andrew Strauss to the newly-created post of England’s director of cricket probably only lessens the likelihood of Kevin Pietersen being part of the squad for their four-Test tour of South Africa, land of his birth, next summer.
England are the headline visitors for the 2015/16 season here, inevitably bringing a “Barmy Army” of several thousand supporters with them, revelling in warm weather and a favourable exchange rate for them.
Series between the two countries tend to be close and engaging ... although while the Proteas retain their hold on the No 1 spot on the ICC Test rankings, English cricket in general is in some disarray at present after a lamentable World Cup and then unimpressive 1-1 outcome in the three-Test series away to struggling West Indies.