Strauss Achieves Perfect Pitch

No cricketer embodies the new England quite like Andrew Strauss. It is not simply that he alone has experienced a Test career made up entirely of victories, although that certainly helps. It is more that he is so totally at ease with his game, so apparently unflappable, that he has the priceless ability of making molehills out of mountains.

England's mini run chase in the first Test at Port Elizabeth provided a neat example. "There was a bit of pressure on, especially when Tres [Marcus Trescothick] went first ball," says Strauss. "And when we were 11 for two you knew we were in a game of cricket. In a way it was quite daunting. But in another way it was exciting to be part of that and to try and get us out of the mire."

An unbeaten 94 - nearly two-thirds of England's runs - did exactly that and raised Strauss's Test average to a heady 57.85, which is the territory of Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid and Matthew Hayden. These are early days, of course, and Australia lie in wait but at the moment Strauss is achieving the notable feat of riding the crest of a wave while keeping his feet firmly on the ground.

"His attitude is spot on," said the England captain Michael Vaughan after the first Test. "He doesn't get too high when he does well and he doesn't get too low when he does badly. Technically he's pretty good but more importantly his mental side is excellent. He's going to be a great player for us for many a year."

When England were tottering at 50 for three in pursuit of 142, the presence at the crease of Graham Thorpe was reassuring. But what quickly became clear was that Strauss has it in him to become a kind of Thorpe-plus - equally gritty but with the ability to move through the gears.

Strauss recently joked that the only way he would ever hit a six in a Test match would be with a top-edged pull. On Tuesday morning he clattered the fast bowler Dale Steyn over the midwicket ropes without a top edge in sight. It was his first six in Test cricket - another boundary crossed.

"I think anyone will tell you that Test cricket is a mental game more than anything," he says. "There are loads of guys with different techniques and ways of scoring runs." Strauss's preferred method is to hit boundaries with fierce cross-batted strokes and nudge ones and twos behind the wicket. Before he moved from 97 to 101 in the first innings with a straight drive, Strauss had scored only one run in the V between mid-off and mid-on. And his second-innings 94 contained only six runs down the ground.

Such pronounced preferences do not trouble him, although the longer he plays the more his strengths and weaknesses will be analysed: Australia are sure to compile a no-stone-unturned dossier. But like all successful Test batsmen Strauss has the God-given ability to focus. "All I try to do when I get in the middle is to have nothing in my head, no technical thoughts or anything. It's easier when you're in good form; when you're out of form it's harder."

It is tempting to ask how on earth he should know. But Strauss is realistic enough to admit that a downturn will come. "It's never easy when you're in a slump in county cricket," he says, "and I assume it's even worse in Test cricket because the bowling is so much better and the pressure is that much more."

Strauss's almost overnight status as England's top-order rock - he bats on average four and a half hours per Test - is a world away from his debut season for Middlesex Second XI, when he averaged 13 and questioned his ability to make the grade. He describes that period as "a massive slap in the face". Suddenly the job offers from various accountancy firms in the City on the back of his economics degree from Durham University must have seemed tempting.

But he came under the paternal influence of the Australian Test opener Justin Langer and has since been compared to him on a regular basis. "He was a great role model at Middlesex," says Strauss. "He worked really hard with the players which he didn't have to, being a Test player already."

In the last few days the comparisons have felt even more natural, with both men scoring a century and a 90 in a Test. "He's made the best out of what he's got and that's all you can ask for," says Strauss of Langer. He might as well have been talking about himself.

How to beat Strauss

Make him drive

If the first Test taught the South African seamers anything it was that Strauss prefers to play off the back foot. Shaun Pollock and co could lure him forward and get him to reach for the ball outside off stump.

Toss it up

The only quality spinner Strauss has faced in his brief Test career so far has been New Zealand's Daniel Vettori, and he wasn't on top form. If Nicky Boje is selected Strauss's nous, and not just his reflexes could come under scrutiny.

Pack off-side cordon

In the first innings at Port Elizabeth Strauss momentarily lost concentration and pinged Pollock straight to point. Like all left-handers he might be susceptible to slashing the ball in the air, so a floating slip, gulley and point should be the bare minimum.