England's jewels need glittering performance

The tricky part of England's winter is finally behind them. They have successfully juggled their political hot potato in Zimbabwe - with only the occasional glitch of protocol along the way - and the team can now, at long last, refocus their attentions on their day job. Tomorrow at Randjesfontein, cricket (a sport, lest we forget, that England were proving to be rather good at come the end of last season) returns to the top of the agenda.

But what an agenda. The small matter of five Tests in six weeks lies ahead of England, and for the first time since South Africa's readmission to international cricket, they are travelling as clear-cut favourites. It is not a burden that has traditionally sat easily on English shoulders, and with just four scheduled warm-up days ahead of the first Test at Port Elizabeth on December 17, tomorrow's tour opener, against Nicky Oppenheimer's XI at the family ranch near Johannesburg, has taken on an added significance.

The Oppenheimers are the hosts with the most, the dynasty at the helm of the world-renowned De Beers Corporation. They have had generations of experience in polishing rough diamonds and, in that respect, there could be no better setting for the return of England's karatty kids, Steve Harmison and Andrew Flintoff, who have not had a chance to shine since the final of the Champions Trophy more than two months ago.

England's other high-profile omission from the one-dayers in Zimbabwe was Marcus Trescothick, who takes over as captain while Michael Vaughan has a well-earned break. Given the tightrope he has walked in the last fortnight, his day off will presumably be spent in a darkened room, where he can refocus his attentions on field placings and forget the need to avoid diplomatic faux pas.

The shift of emphasis away from Zimbabwe and towards the Tests was confirmed by the announcement of England's team for the Oppenheimer match. It contains all eight of the recently arrived Test specialists, who have spent the last few days warming up amid torrential downpours in Johannesburg, and of the seven players who featured in all four victories over Zimbabwe, only the ever-willing Paul Collingwood has been pressganged into further action. His inclusion is a sure sign that he will be relegated to the bench come the main event.

England will not be allowed to exorcise their Zimbabwe demons that easily, however, not with a certain Heath Streak lining up to have a dart at them tomorrow. Streak, who recently called off his floundering civil action against the Zimbabwe cricket authorities who stripped him of the national captaincy, recently hinted that he might be willing to make a return to the team. With that in mind, he is unlikely to be going easy on England's batsmen, not least Trescothick, whose overseas record pales in comparison to his home form, and who will be mindful of the need to hit the ground running after his break from the game.

The weather, however, may yet deny England their opportunity to get fully match-focused ahead of the Port Elizabeth Test. With unseasonally dismal conditions predicted for the rest of the week, all 11 of England's first-choice Test players could struggle to obtain any meaningful time in the middle over the next few days. "If it rains for four days, I'll say that we'll be undercooked for the first Test," said Duncan Fletcher, with the sort of guarded admission that made him a natural for diplomatic duties in Zimbabwe.

That's the trouble with today's non-stop treadmill of international cricket. Those who dare to take a breather run the risk of tripping over their own feet as they rush to get back up to speed. For England, however, a change (of personnel, as well as venue) is as good as a rest. Given the numbing predictability of the Zimbabwe saga, they'll be itching to get involved in a real contest, come rain or shine.

England 1 Marcus Trescothick (capt), 2 Robert Key, 3 Mark Butcher, 4 Graham Thorpe, 5 Andrew Flintoff, 6 Paul Collingwood, 7 Chris Read (wk), 8 Gareth Batty, 9 Simon Jones, 10 Matthew Hoggard, 11 Stephen Harmison.

Oppenheimer's XI Ashwell Prince (capt), Andre Seymore, Neil Johnson, JP Duminy, Francois du Plessis, Wendell Bossenger (wk), Heath Streak, Grant Howell, Werner Coetsee, Charl Willoughby, Lonwabe Tsotsobe.