Andrew Strauss could be drafted into the England side for their opening Twenty20 international against South Africa at Wanderers this afternoon if Alastair Cook fails to recover from a sore throat.

England were due to make a decision on Cook this morning and although Strauss has quit the shortest form of international cricket, he may have to step in as the team are short of a top-order replacement.

Kevin Pietersen joined up with the squad on Wednesday but will not be risked after more than three months out with an Achilles injury. Instead, Pietersen is likely to feature in Tuesday's tour match against South Africa 'A' in Potchefstroom.

England's Twenty 20 skipper Paul Collingwood said: "When KP comes back in the side, what he brings is a world-class player, it's as simple as that.

"He's a great character to have in the dressing room and that can only be a real positive for us because we've missed him over the past few months."

Graeme Swann, Graham Onions and James Anderson have all recovered from knocks for today's match in Johannesburg but Stuart Broad is still recovering from a shoulder injury.