Thus there is no place for Herschelle Gibbs among the batsmen and a recall for rugged all-rounder Brian McMillan. His international career seemed at an end but he has been brought back to bolster the middle-order batting which, as recent Test series have shown, is the main weakness in a side whose strength relies largely on the outstanding pair of new-ball bowlers, Allan Donald and Shaun Pollock.

Pollock's father, Peter, South Africa's convenor of selectors, said yesterday: ``Mac had a rough season but he is a good player and South Africa still have a vulnerability factor in our batting. He has a good record in England and we have picked him mainly as a batsman and a slip fielder.''

Pollock Jnr is now a genuine Test all-rounder, rather than just a fast bowler, but if McMillan does enough early in the tour to justify a Test place, he will add valuable depth both to the batting and the seam bowling. His selection therefore increases the chances of Pat Symcox, four years his senior, playing in at least some of the five Tests.

He has hitherto been in the running in two series against England but has played in neither and but for some outstanding performances in recent months, he would have lost his place for this trip to the younger off-spinning all-rounder, Derek Crookes.

Hylton Ackerman and Gibbs, whose talent is such that he apparently went round in 78 in his first game of golf, have lost out to Gerhardus Liebenberg, who will be the reserve opener and reserve wicketkeeper, and the old stager Jonty Rhodes.

The party includes six fast bowlers and Hayward may be the quickest of them. He will inevitably be compared, unfairly no doubt, with Donald. The other quick bowlers include Border's Makhaya Ntini, who has had a successful under-19 tour here, and the mixed-race swing bowler Roger Telemachus, from Boland. Happily, Paul Adams is also included but since he deals almost exclusively in googlies rather than chinamen, it will be surprising if he is as successful as several other wrist spinners - Warne, Mushtaq Ahmed, Ramnarine - who have undermined England.

South Africa's outstanding performances in one-day cricket under Hansie Cronje are well documented. At Test level, their batting is vulnerable but their fast bowling so much better than England's that they will probably start the series as favourites. They leave South Africa on May 9 and start the tour with a three-day match against Worcestershire on May 14.

SOUTH AFRICA SQUAD: G Kirsten, A M Bacher, G F J Liebenberg, J H Kallis, D J Cullinan, *W J Cronje, B M McMillan, J N Rhodes, -M V Boucher, S M Pollock, A A Donald, L Klusener, P R Adams, P L Symcox, M Hayward, R Telemachus, M Ntini.