Proteas name unchanged team

South Africa resisted the temptation to make changes for the final Test at The Oval today as they attempted to undermine the start to Kevin Pietersen's reign as England captain.

Main spearhead Dale Steyn, who missed the victory in Birmingham with a fractured thumb, was ruled out earlier in the week as he attempts to recover for the start of the one-day series at Headingley on August 22.

Pietersen had already announced his bold selection for his opening match by deciding against strengthening England's misfiring batting line-up in favour of playing an extra bowler.

Ian Bell has been promoted to his favoured number three spot as a replacement for Michael Vaughan, with Paul Collingwood and all-rounder Andrew Flintoff moving up a position to number five and number six.

Injured left-arm seamer Ryan Sidebottom has dropped out, with Steve Harmison and Stuart Broad supplementing Flintoff and James Anderson as England's seam options.

However, Pietersen did not get off to a great start to his captaincy, with counterpart Graeme Smith winning the toss and deciding to bat first.