Pietersen returns for tour of South Africa

The England Test and one-day cricket squads for this winter's tour of South Africa have been announced. There are several notable omissions, some unexpected recalls and one important inclusion.
 
The biggest news is that Kevin Pietersen is on the road to recovery and is set to face his homeland in England's colours after missing most of the Ashes series with an Achilles problem. He will join the squad in South Africa after the first two Twenty20 Internationals and his fitness will be reassessed ahead of the one-day series.
 
Bowlers Steve Harmison and Monty Panesar plus batsmen Ravi Bopara and Owais Shah - who all played against Australia at some stage this summer - have been overlooked. But there are surprise call-ups for former England bowler Liam Plunkett along with the uncapped trio of Steve Davies, Adil Rashid and Luke Wright who are all named in the Test squad. Sajid Mahmood has also won a recall to the one-day squad.
 
Pietersen's name will be of most interest to South African fans. He has never played a Test in his homeland but forced his way into the England one-day set-up on their last tour there. He ended with an incredible average of 151 after seven one-day games - and became public enemy number one for Proteas fans. He will be afforded a very hostile reception.
 
But he won’t be the only one in the England party at risk of harsh treatment. South African-born Jonathan Trott, who was called up for the final Test of the summer and helped England win the Ashes with a masterful century on debut, is also on the plane. And both skipper Andrew Strauss and keeper Matthew Prior lived in South Africa as youngsters.
 
Their presence will guarantee that the series has an element of needle. Strauss and his South African counterpart Graeme Smith also have scores to settle. Strauss would not let Smith have a runner during their Champions Trophy clash in September and after the game the defeated Proteas skipper warned: "The thing I have learned from this game is that the world is round and it is going to come back somewhere in his captaincy."
 
If England fans expected an easy series in the wake of the Ashes, they have another think coming.
 
Test squad: Andrew Strauss (Middlesex - captain), Alastair Cook (Essex - vice captain), James Anderson (Lancashire), Ian Bell (Warwickshire), Stuart Broad (Nottinghamshire), Paul Collingwood (Durham), Steven Davies (Surrey), Graham Onions (Durham), Kevin Pietersen (Hampshire), Liam Plunkett (Durham), Matt Prior (Sussex), Adil Rashid (Yorkshire), Ryan Sidebottom (Nottinghamshire), Graeme Swann (Nottinghamshire), Jonathan Trott (Warwickshire), Luke Wright (Sussex).
 
One-day squad: Andrew Strauss (Middlesex - captain), James Anderson (Lancashire), Tim Bresnan (Yorkshire), Stuart Broad (Nottinghamshire), Paul Collingwood (Durham), Alastair Cook (Essex), Joe Denly (Kent), Sajid Mahmood (Lancashire), Eoin Morgan (Middlesex), Graham Onions (Durham), Kevin Pietersen (Hampshire), Matt Prior (Sussex), Adil Rashid (Yorkshire), Graeme Swann (Nottinghamshire), Jonathan Trott (Warwickshire), Luke Wright (Sussex). ·