Andy Flower may have batted with the resolution and strength of reinforced steel for 14 hours and 39 minutes against South Africa but he said afterwards that steel had nothing to do with it. It was titanium. "Just in there," he said holding his left thumb up and pointing to the inch-long scar that is still pink and swelled following surgery to reconstruct it just seven weeks ago. "There's a titanium pin holding everything together. It stays in there forever, they don't take it out. I think that's why it's titanium, so it doesn't rust!"

It was the only thing that Flower could think of that had changed. The approach was the same, the build-up, the preparation. "It's the result of years of hard work – that's all I can think of," Flower smiled. "And the pin!"

Flower's surgeon had been as desperate as he was for a successful operation and, like a protective parent, had insisted on seeing his patient twice weekly. Flower grew more and more concerned about the apparent concern the doctor displayed with each visit so he took matters into his own hands, so to speak.

"I thought 'sod it' and stopped going back! There was no way I wasn't going to be fit for the South Africa series. I was going play whatever it looked like. I'm sure he would have given me the go-ahead but I didn't want to be worried about it so I just carried on with my life and allowed it to heal."

The aerobic fitness required to bat for that length of time, especially after two months away from the game, is beyond most men and requires extraordinary dedication. Apparently, that too, came from previous years.

"I didn't do much at all," he admits with an embarrassed grin. "Spent plenty of quality time with Becky and the kids [Jamie and Sam, four and two] and basically stayed away from the game. I played some squash with Grant and had a couple of jogs but that was it."

The records do mean a lot to Flower although he didn't know about any of them until after they were completed. Being the perfectionist he is, it is the wicketkeeping milestones that mean most to him. "Being the first keeper to score two hundreds is a bit special. I'm chuffed with that."

He wants to be remembered as a good wicketkeeper-batsman, not just a great batsman. In fact, the company he keeps at the top of the pile in world cricket amuses him. Steve Waugh and Sachin Tendulkar are, according to Flower, in a different class. He should not be included in comparisons, he says. No-one else in the world seems to agree.

He had no idea what his career average was after this extraordinary Test. "What is it?" he asked. "Just over 55." There were no words in reply, just an enormous grin followed by a delighted, amused laugh. If the rest of the world haven't realised quite how good Andy Flower is, then they are in good company. Neither has he.

Neil Manthorp is a leading freelance cricket writer in South Africa.

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