Good on yer, South Africa

Many Australian critics, typically recapturing their gung-ho voices not long after the dust settled on the Test portion, quickly latched on to Johan Botha’s status as leader as a source of mystery and potential weakness. Rob Houwing in Sport24.com doffs his cap proudly to the South Africans for their highly successful tour of Australia and the sparkling and utterly professional way they have gone about their instant business despite the emotional demands of the prior Test phase for the many dual-role players in the camp.

While the batsmen did well and hogged the headlines, the man who had a quietly monumental series was Botha. It had been tough to fill Graeme Smith’s shoes and he not only managed that, he also bowled quite beautifully. Alex Parker in his blog on the website of the South African daily, the Times, believes Botha is the Man of the Series by a stretch.