When England returned to Johannesburg after an ordeal-like tour to Zimbabwe, there was relief all round. But the tables have turned. While England have no political issues to battle, the new year began on an inauspicious note when they lost to South Africa by 197 runs at Cape Town, their first loss in fourteen Tests and ending what was indeed a dream run.

If England were fortunate at Port Elizabeth and made the most of their opportunities as the hosts took time to tune themselves to the task, they were frustrated to be thwarted by their opponents and bad light at Durban despite staging a remarkable comeback in the second innings. The Cape Town Test clearly left them embarrassed as the host revved their engines into not exactly optimum gear, but enough to leave the visitors out of breath at the end of the third Test.

England, it appears, are not just suffering from mental fitness leading to a stagnancy in strategy, but they also have a couple of injury worries. Mark Butcher has been ruled out with a sprained wrist that kept him out of the third Test. Robert Key, with a forty-one against his name in the second innings at Cape Town, should be able to retain his place although Ian Bell has been flown in. 

England are holding their cards close to their hearts as far as Andrew "Freddie" Flintoff is concerned. Flintoff tore an abdominal muscle at Cape Town, and it will a big blow if he is ruled out from bowling duties. The selection muddle gets crankier as the decision to bring in James Anderson could come at the cost of none other than Ashley Giles, a gamble that England would certainly not want to take. Steve Harmison, dubbed at the start of the series as the man to watch out for, has been a shadow of his recent self. The English bowling attack is suddenly looking as unsteady as South Africa's.

The hosts were buoyed by Charl Langeveldt's inclusion. After all, Langeveldt for responsible for England's early problems against South Africa 'A.' He vindicated his choice in the Test XI with a match-winning five-wicket haul, despite a broken bone in his left hand courtesy a Flintoff bouncer. South Africa would not want to tweak their side too much just when they are getting a hang of weaknesses in the England camp. Hashim Amla though must be definitely experiencing heat under his collar. He hasn't had a significant innings to his name yet while Martin Van Jaarsveld was dropped from the previous Test despite a positive performance at Durban.

South Africa will have to fight just as hard to maintain the edge that they have gained after the third Test. On the other hand, Michael Vaughan and his team will be feeling the heat. The English captain hasn't been in good form, and that is only adding to the pressure he will be under. England have performed remarkably over the last year and one defeat certainly does not nullify their achievements. But they were caught on the wrong foot in Capetown. South Africa cannot afford to sit on their laurels either. They have to top their previous performances to emerge as series victors, a task not easy with a bunch of rookies to tackle. From a spectator's perspective, let us hope that the Johannesburg encounter is a riveting one.