South Africa skipper Smith says captaincy could ruin Pietersen's flair

Stumps up: Michael Vaughan steps up to congratulate Graeme Smith

‘I would have thought England would go for a younger option — someone who can grow into the job. I was that guy before. They’ve got Australia coming here next summer but they could give a younger guy a year to develop.’

Smith scored a majestic, unbeaten 154 on Saturday evening to lead his side to a five-wicket victory in the third npower Test at Edgbaston — a result which earned South Africa their first series victory on English soil since 1965.

Having celebrated with understandable gusto until the early hours, the groggy tourists were rudely awakened by a fire alarm at their Birmingham hotel yesterday morning.

Once they were allowed back into the hotel, the squad decamped en masse into the breakfast room, at which point Sportsmail informed coach Mickey Arthur that Vaughan was stepping down as England captain. He reacted with disbelief, as did Smith and the other players when word spread.

Coach and captain were both keen to discover who would take over and whether or not Vaughan would retain his place in the top order. But the overriding feeling was one of sympathy for a worthy adversary, and veteran wicketkeeper Mark Boucher soon approached your correspondent seeking Vaughan’s phone number as several South Africa players wanted to pass on their best wishes.

Shortly afterwards, Smith offered a glowing tribute to his departing counterpart, saying: ‘From our point of view there is a feeling of shock. He was a great captain. Everyone could see that he’s been under pressure but I’m really surprised, especially with the Ashes coming up next year, that he has stepped down.

Happy skipper: Graeme Smith celebrates after victory in the third Test

‘I’ve got a lot of respect for him as a leader. I think he’s always handled himself unbelievably well. In many ways it is a loss to world cricket because he is a good statesman for the game and has always represented the game very well. And he can look back at some wonderful achievements, which is the main thing.

‘He had a great ability to read the game and he had the ability to play with your mind, as a batter. He also went away from the conventional three slips and a gully sometimes. He would try different things.

‘We both started as captains at the same time. He progressed quicker than me in many ways and got the team that he wanted very quickly. As a leader he became an icon captain pretty quickly.’

Smith insisted that there were no signs of Vaughan’s leadership powers waning through this series. However, privately, South Africa contend that the home captain’s angry lunchtime outburst at AB de Villiers over a wrongly-claimed catch during the Headingley Test was out of character and a sign that he was feeling the strain.

For Smith, job insecurity is not on the agenda. His position has never been so safe. After his team slumped to 93 for four on Saturday in pursuit of 281 for victory, the 27-year-old guided his side to an historic triumph, aided and abetted by the durable Boucher.

The pair put on 112 and accelerated to their target at 7.17pm, with the ground all but empty. A jubilant Smith outlined just how much the series victory meant to South Africa, saying: ‘Ever since readmission, we have really strived for victory in England and have always been disappointed. It’s bigger than just us, this victory, and so I have to say it’s my best innings.

‘If you take the whole bigger picture of all the players who’ve come before us, given it their all and had the disappointment, as well as the many who haven’t had the opportunity in the many years past, and the fans back home, you can imagine what it’s like. For us this was bigger than a cricket game, it was a huge moment and something we’re really proud of.’