England seek icing on 2004 cake

On December 22, 2003, England's battered cricketers limped from the field at Colombo, thrashed by an innings and 215 runs by Sri Lanka. A year of steady consolidation had ended on a bum note, and the only cheering thought was the prospect of an early flight home for Christmas.

Precisely 12 months later, however, the scenario could not be more different. Christmas is calling once again, but this time it is nothing more than a pleasant diversion for a set of keenly focussed cricketers. England's victory in the first Test at Port Elizabeth was their 11th in 12 matches in 2004, their eighth in consecutive Tests, and when the Boxing Day Test gets underway on Sunday, they have the chance to finish the year with an unbeaten record, something that no other side - not even the Australians - will have achieved.

Before they can make such claims of invincibility, however, England will have to overcome a South African side that, on paper at least, promises to provide much stiffer opposition than was on show at St George's Park. And, after sweltering his way through a two-hour practice session at Kingsmead, Michael Vaughan was adamant that England could take nothing for granted.

"South Africa will come back hard," he warned. "It is a lot hotter here than it was in Port Elizabeth, and the humidity will be a big factor as well. These conditions are similar to what they are like in Sri Lanka, and after batting for just 20 minutes in the nets, it hit home that's it's going to be a really tough Test out there."

England are a well-travelled bunch these days, with a gameplan for all conditions, although Vaughan's first impressions of the Kingsmead wicket were not exactly favourable. With two days to go until the match gets underway, it remains green and fuzzy, and seems likely to favour the seamers, even though the word locally is that the square has been dull and lifeless for much of the season.

"It's an interesting wicket," said Vaughan. "If we were playing today, then I'd say it was a bit iffy, but obviously a lot can change in 48 hours. If the surface stays like that, then [Shaun] Pollock will be crucial - although with our attack, we have a bowler for all occasions, and I like to think our batters can cope with all surfaces."

One of those bowlers, England's second-innings hero Simon Jones, was the only slight fitness worry, but he was declared fit to play after recovering from a stomach bug. With the entire squad fit and raring to go, Vaughan expected a better overall performance from his players than the one they produced in the first Test. "I'd say we were only at 75% [at Port Elizabeth]. We expect to raise our game by at least 10%."

One by one, the pieces of England's jigsaw are falling into place. Graham Thorpe, the only batsman without significant runs this tour, gained valuable time in the middle at PE, albeit from the non-striker's end, as Andrew Strauss blasted England to victory on the final morning, while Steve Harmison's elusive rhythm appeared to be inching back into the frame during a lively workout in the Durban nets.

"When Steve's bowling at his best, he glides to the crease," explained Vaughan, before reiterating his belief that Harmison has a match-turning spell tucked somewhere up his sleeve for this series. "There was a four-over spell in the second innings [at PE] when he started to look like his old self, and that can only be a good sign."

Although England have faith in their full complement of bowlers, they can ill-afford another off-match for Harmison, not when South Africa's batting line-up is set to be reinforced by the return of Herschelle Gibbs at the top of the order. Together with Graeme Smith, they were a peerless opening pairing on the 2003 tour of England, with four centuries between them in the five Tests, the lowest of which was 179. Naturally, Gibbs was sorely missed by South Africa in the first Test.

"Herschelle looked hungry when he was in the dressing-room in Port Elizabeth," said Smith. "We all know what an awesome player he can be. He can turn a match and we are hoping he finds his feet quickly." Gibbs didn't fare too well in a comeback innings for Western Province on Wednesday night - he was out for 4 - but as England proved against South Africa A, big-match players can turn it on when it really matters.

Gibbs's return is important for reasons other than sheer ability, however. His inclusion as a player of colour, alongside the captain of the Durban-based Nashua Dolphins, Hashim Amla, and maybe even the swing bowler, Charl Langeveldt, England's conqueror at Potchefstroom, allows the selectors to be slightly more adventurous with their picks further down the order, and the wicketkeeper, Thami Tsolekile, will come under particular scrutiny.

In terms of pure glovework, there could be no complaints whatsoever about Tsolekile's performance at Port Elizabeth - one particularly legside take off Makhaya Ntini was sensational. His dour batting, on the other hand, was little more effective than Matthew Hoggard's, and for this must-win match, South Africa are sorely tempted to throw the gauntlets to AB de Villiers, whose attacking strokeplay caught the eye on a composed debut last week.

It is sure to be a debate that goes down to the wire, although to drop Tsolekile after one home Test would be harsh in the circumstances, and unwise in the long-term of South African cricket - especially in the light of Smith's call for the selectors to identify their first-team players and stick with them.

But any hopes of Smith getting a settled side have already been rocked by the knee injury to Boeta Dippenaar, which appears certain to rule him out of the Test. The knee is swollen and with fluid spreading to the calves as well, Dippenaar was in severe pain. de Villiers should get the nod as his replacement, though it remains to be seen whether he slots into the middle order.

The return of Nicky Boje - as spinner, vice-captain and lower-order stalwart - goes some way towards narrowing the experience gap between the teams. Kallis's return as a bowler reduces the need for the extra allrounder in Andrew Hall, while Dale Steyn's youthful exuberance is expected to be shelved to give the one-day veteran Langeveldt a long-overdue debut. But once again, the runes point to an England victory. Smith will surely be hoping to win the toss and get himself and Gibbs into the thick of things as quickly as possible.

South Africa (probable) 1 Graeme Smith (capt), 2 Herschelle Gibbs, 3 Jacques Rudolph, 4 Jacques Kallis, 5 AB de Villiers, 6 Hashim Amla, 7 Shaun Pollock, 8 Nicky Boje, 9 Thami Tsolekile (wk), 10 Charl Langeveldt, 11 Makhaya Ntini.

England (probable) 1 Marcus Trescothick, 2 Andrew Strauss, 3 Mark Butcher, 4 Michael Vaughan (capt), 5 Graham Thorpe, 6 Andrew Flintoff, 7 Geraint Jones (wk), 8 Ashley Giles, 9 Simon Jones, 10 Matthew Hoggard, 11 Steve Harmison.