Lewis in line for Test debut

It was not the most concrete confirmation that an England Test debut was in the pipeline, but the sight of Jon Lewis receiving the congratulations of his team-mates, shortly before play was scheduled to get under way at Centurion at 12pm, suggested that England's seam attack will have a new member when play eventually gets underway in the fifth and final Test tomorrow.

Lewis, 29, only arrived in South Africa last week as cover for Andrew Flintoff, but with his track record on the sort of damp seamer that England can expect to face when play begins, he seems likely to leap straight into the starting XI. Though the management are keeping their cards close to their chests, Lewis has been named in a 13-man squad ahead of James Anderson, who misfired in the fourth Test at the Wanderers, and he is expected to contest the final spot with Simon Jones and Paul Collingwood.

"I am an English-type bowler and so there's a good chance I might get a game," said Lewis, who was placed on standby for this tour at the start of the winter, and has been honing his game at the ECB Academy in Loughborough. "The wicket is a little bit green and the ball might swing around. I would be very proud to play for my country, so if I get my chance I will be looking to take it."

Lewis's rise to prominence was checked by a stress fracture to the back, which he picked up after touring the Caribbean with England A in 2000-01, but in the last two seasons he has been peerless on the county circuit, picking up 74 first-class victims in 2003 and a further 57 last summer, a campaign which he capped by bowling Gloucestershire to victory in the C&G Trophy final at Lord's. His eventual figures were 3 for 32 in 10 overs, but he kicked the match off by reducing Worcestershire to 8 for 3 in swinging conditions.

"These days, I am a bit more consistent and a bit more professional," said Lewis, who added that his back injury had forced him to knuckle down and make a proper career of cricket. "I worked out I couldn't do much else [in life] other than run in and bowl, so I got my head down and started working rather than just playing cricket."

If selected, Lewis will be the first Gloucestershire cricketer to represent England since the days of Jack Russell, although last year he came close to moving to Warwickshire, out of frustration at his lack of recognition. It was only when he was named in a 30-man provisional squad for the Champions Trophy that he accepted that Bristol was a place from where he could indeed push his career forward.

As and when his turn comes to bat, Lewis will have to face up to another man who has honed his skills in county cricket, Northamptonshire's former seamer, Andre Nel, who is back in South Africa's starting XI after an injury-blighted season. "I have five months of aggression built up inside of me," warned Nel, whose confrontational style has attracted the attention of a succession of match referees. "If I am not in the guy's face I am half the bowler I could be. That is part of my armoury and I have got to use it as best as I can."