Port Elizabeth - Jacques Kallis, the missing link in South Africa's bowling attack is back in action and the immediate response by the national selectors yesterday was to jettison David Terbrugge from the side for the third Test at Kingsmead 12 days away.

As England's captain Nasser Hussain neatly ducked the question of objecting to Rudi Koertzen standing in the fifth Test of this Millennium Series at Centurion in five weeks time, Rushdi Magiet's selection panel put their faith in Kallis to fill the crucial role of the fourth seamer in Durban.

The return of Kallis to the bowling attack is the best sort of news for South Africa as they move forward to the next century with a more secured feeling about the long-term future of the pace attack after Mornantau Hayward's showing in his Test debut. He fired them in fast and furious and left no doubt that he wants to become a permanent fixture in the attack.

It does leave Magiet's panel with the problem of whether to go for an all pace attack as we had at St George's Park in the drawn second Test or drop Hayward for the third game in the five match-series in favour of the left-arm wrist spinner Paul Adams.

What did please Magiet and Co though was the way Kallis came through his carefully nursed bowling spell. Kallis, out of the attack since the Bloemfontein Test against Zimbabwe, picked up two wickets for 22 runs in seven overs. First sign that Hansie Cronje was considering using him was when the all-rounder bowled for 15 minutes during the warm up session before yesterday's play.

It was "just a teaser to see if he was ready" and there was a different perspective in the attack with a swing bowling ducking the ball nicely away. Perhaps, though, he will now get on and bat as he can instead of scratching around.

As expected the selectors kept faith with Gary Kirsten for another Test, as they hope he will find some form between now and that game although Western Province have only two day/night domestic games between this second Test and that in Durban starting on December 26. It is no doubt the reason for releasing Boeta Dippenaar for him 12th man duties.

The selectors have allowed the players to make themselves available for their provinces in the Standard Bank and SuperSport Series Super Eight matches. Hansie Cronje is playing against Northerns at Springbok Park in Bloemfontein while Daryll Cullinan has requested permission to play for Gauteng in the limited-overs slogs and the A Section game this for Gauteng against Natal at the Wanderers this weekend.

Hussain, however, would not be drawn into commenting on Koertzen's umpiring of this match. South Africa's No 1 and highly rated on the ICC panel, the Port Elizabeth man did not have the sort of game he would like to remember. There were several doubtful decisions which left most observers wondering about his respected international ranking.

"It is not for me to comment," he said. "I'll fill out my umpires report and send it off to the authorities (ICC) and that is where it ends at this stage. "Others can make the comments I do it in my report and that is between me and the whoever receives it."

Man of the match, Klusener's most pertinent comment came when he admitted he would like to start taking wickets again. It was nice to get runs but taking wickets was also part of his brief and he hoped it would change in Durban.