We did well to earn the draw, says Strauss

England captain Andrew Strauss has admitted that his side were second best throughout the series in South Africa and offered praise to the home side.

England endured a crushing final Test defeat to South Africa that allowed the hosts to retain the Basil D’Oliveira trophy.

Speaking after the conclusion of Sunday’s Test, Strauss said that he believes a draw is a good result for England.

“The way we played over the four Tests, we did pretty well to earn a one-all,” Strauss told Sky Sports. “South Africa were ahead in three of the four Tests, so to come out at one-all is a good result for us.”

He added: “I think you’ve got to give a lot of credit to Graeme [Smith, the South Africa captain] and his team, they didn’t give us a sniff in this Test match,”

Finally he admitted that the manner of the defeat was hard to take.

“We’re a little bit disappointed with our performance in this game and leave the tour with a little bit of a bitter taste in our mouths.”