The unheralded warrior

As far as the build-up to this series is concerned, youth is everything and experience counts for nowt. That's the obvious conclusion to be drawn from a two-week period in which Morne Morkel and Dale Steyn have soared into the public eye, amid fanciful suggestions that they will spearhead the most aggressive bowling onslaught since West Indies were in their mid-1980s pomp. So far, the only witnesses to their hostility have been a soggy smattering of spectators at Uxbridge, but the prospect has whet the appetite nonetheless, almost as effectively as the ceaseless rain has wet the Lord's outfield.

It is ironic, therefore, that the man who has truly earned the right to be regarded as the champion of South Africa's fast bowling has barely merited a mention on this trip so far. Makhaya Ntini needs only six more wickets to reach 350 in Test cricket, a tally that has been surpassed by 15 bowlers, greats one and all. Once described by Andrew Flintoff as the most relentless bowler he had ever faced, Ntini still hurtles to the crease in much the same manner in which he used to chase after his cattle while growing up in the Xhosa village of Mdingi in the Eastern Cape. At the age of 31, his best years are probably behind him, but he's a long way from being finished just yet.

"I can't say I'm disappointed," said South Africa's captain, Graeme Smith, when asked if he was surprised by Ntini's lack of recognition on this trip. "It's a huge motivation for him, because he's certainly become the senior statesman in our attack." Only two matches ago in Ahmedabad, he silenced his doubters with three first-morning wickets, as India were bowled out in exactly 20 overs, but Ntini hardly needs any extra motivation when it comes to the Lord's experience. He only needs to look above his head in the dressing room and see his name etched on the most exclusive honours board of all.

August 3, 2003 was quite possibly the greatest day of Ntini's life. That it was also, arguably, the greatest day in South Africa's Test history speaks volumes for his stature in the side and his importance to the nation as a whole. When he sank to his knees and kissed the turf, having become the tenth overseas cricketer - and the first South African - to take ten wickets in a Lord's Test, he created an iconic image to set alongside that of Francois Pienaar accepting the Webb Ellis Trophy from Nelson Mandela at the 1995 Rugby World Cup. Never mind the young bucks in the South African camp. This particular venue belongs to the old stager.

As Ntini memorably declared after the match, had his grandfather been alive, he would probably have slaughtered a cow in celebration. England had been routed by an innings and 92 runs, a margin that was massaged only by a brutal but futile 142 from Flintoff. Even in that duel, however, Ntini secured the enduring image, when he split Flintoff's bat from tip to splice, and celebrated as if he had plucked out his middle stump. "He was taking me on and challenging me," said Ntini, "but I showed him I can challenge him even more."

Ntini's success was all the more heroic, given the injury that limited Dewald Pretorius to seven overs in the entire match. "I was driven by something I don't know. I was driven by emotion," Ntini recalled. "I was a hard worker, and I was motivated by Corrie [van Zyl, the bowling coach], who said to me: 'You must understand, Makie, you are the only one who can bowl 50 overs.' That motivation drove me. And now, every time you pass by a person who's been in the changing room at Lord's, you know he's seen the greatest cricketers that there have been at this ground, and you are one of them."

It is an illustrious brotherhood to which Ntini belongs, and gratifyingly, of the four previous entries, three are great West Indian fast bowlers - Andy Roberts, Courtney Walsh, and the greatest of them all, Malcolm Marshall, on whom Ntini modelled his open-chested action.

"There is something special about this place, without a doubt," Ntini said. "When I started my career, I said to Corrie, 'If I get an opportunity to play here, I definitely want to leave my name on one of the boards.' So you understand, it was four years of planning, just one of those Test matches that you wait for so much."

The seeds of Ntini's triumph were actually sown on his previous England tour back in 1998, a tour on which he couldn't help but feel he was merely making up the quota numbers. When South Africa thrashed England by ten wickets to take the lead in the series, Ntini wasn't actually with the squad - he had been sent away to play club cricket, and had to watch the images on television.

"They were tough times for me," he said, "waiting for the likes of Allan Donald and Fanie de Villiers to give me a real chance. The worst part was missing the celebrations. When Donald was covering himself with the new South African flag, we were not there. It gave me... not an anger, but a motivation. When you see those guys in the news, hanging off the balcony and taking pictures, you know it's so important. It was one of those days I knew I had to get the opportunity, and when it came, it was something special."

Ntini's second coming at Lord's has been ten years in the making, but this time he has, waiting for him, etched evidence of his worth to the side. So too does his captain, Smith, whose iron-willed double-century carried his series tally past 600 runs in just nine days of the series, while inflicting on England a record first-innings deficit of 509. "We came down the other day, just to have a walk around and get a feel for the ground again," said Smith. "Looking out there, there were some special memories, for the team and personally. It is fantastic to come back here, considering what happened in 2003, and if we can reprise that it would be great."

So much for the newcomers. With Mark Boucher and Jacques Kallis still driven by the memories of their series defeat in 1998, and Neil McKenzie by a desire to reignite his Test career after a three-and-a-half year hiatus, five of South Africa's starting XI enter this series with a prior understanding of the challenge it presents. Steyn and Morkel may well live up to the hype, but right now there's only one bowler in their squad who truly knows what it takes to succeed in England.

"It was the beginning of my best years, like a knife through the hard wood," said Ntini. "Without a doubt it convinced me I could compete at this level." Contrary to his billing thus far on the tour, he's still competing.