CENTURION, South Africa (AFP) — England captain Andrew Strauss yesterday called on his players to “stand up and be counted” in the four-match Test series against South Africa which starts at SuperSport Park today.

He said England would be aggressive against a powerful home team but warned: “It’s got to be done with thoughtfulness and smartly. There’s no point in getting carried away and getting caught up in the moment. It needs to be calculated and controlled.”

Strauss said the series was an opportunity for his side to take a significant step up on their long-term quest to become the best Test team in the world.

“South Africa were the number one side in the world and they haven’t played since they were. And they’re at home. If we could beat them it would add a lot of credence to the idea that we could become number one, but it’s going to be hard to do.”

The England captain said that a return to Test cricket after a long period of playing limited overs games was a chance for the players to ‘reconnect’ with what had enabled them to win the Ashes series against Australia earlier this year, although he said the circumstances were very different.

“It’s a different ball, different conditions and a very different type of team we’re playing against.”

Both teams look set to go into the match with six specialist batsmen and just four bowlers on a pitch which on Tuesday looked a seam bowler’s paradise with a good covering of bright green grass.

But Strauss and South African captain Graeme Smith said much could change before play started on Wednesday.

“Often these wickets look a lot worse a day out from a Test match than they do on the day,” said Strauss.

“But history suggests there can be an advantage in bowling first at this ground. At the moment it looks like it might do a little bit on the first morning.”

Smith said he expected a lot of work to be done on the pitch before Wednesday and sunshine was predicted, in contrast to Tuesday’s overcast weather.

Although South Africa have not played Test cricket since March, Smith said his team were ready for what he expected to be a tough series.