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South Africa's cricketers can now concentrate on their tour of Bangladesh after the quota row has been put on the back burner.
Luckily, the Proteas are playing bottom-of-the-ladder Bangladesh and the issue is unlikely to cast a shadow on the team.
The good thing for the side is that the best players in the country boarded the flight to Dhaka irrespective of creed or colour. South Africa can now look forward to gaining some important practice before their tough tour to India which follows soon after.
Bangladesh should be a walkover for the team which showed awesome form in the home series against New Zealand and the West Indies. The focus will shift more towards the players as South Africa search for a solid foundation for the future.
The opening slot will be under scrutiny now that Herschelle Gibbs has paid for his long spell of poor form. Neil McKenzie made his comeback to the national squad and did fairly well as an opener in the solitary Test against the West Indies.
Unfortunately, injury robbed him of more chances and now he will be raring to go once again. McKenzie certainly has a point to prove to the selectors who ignored him for over four years despite his superb domestic form.
McKenzie is a class player who had brought about his own downfall through self-doubt. He can now capitalise on the weak Bangladesh bowling to cement his place in the side.
Attention will also be on young Jean-Paul Duminy, who performed admirably in the one-day series against the West Indies. The left-hander averages over 50 in first class cricket and is tipped as the next star on the South African horizon.
With all the batsmen in top form in the home season, South Africa should easily cruise to big totals. The bowling, however, will evoke some interest.
Now with the ever-reliable Shaun Pollock having retired, a new combination could be tried against the weak Bangladesh line-up.
A fit Morne Morkel will be worth a try. He has shown so much promise in his short career that more chances are in order.
The wickets will not suit the pacemen. The slow and low wickets test the patience of even the best bowlers in the business.
But it will be a good learning curve for Morkel and the in-form Dale Steyn. The experience will also prove beneficial on the tour to India where the wickets will be similar.
Bangladesh have to take a hard look at the way they play cricket. There is abundance of talent but total lack of commitment.
Whirling and swinging the bat is fine in the shorter version of the game. Test cricket is all about application and patience.
A talented player like captain Mohammed Ashraful averages in the low 20s because he cannot apply himself on a regular basis.
The one good step taken by the Bangladeshi selectors is that they are shifting their focus to youth. They have opted for Tamim Iqbal and Junaid Siddique to open the batting and this move may well pay dividends.
Both had a good series in New Zealand. Iqbal, particularly, showed a new found patience which was lacking in previous outings.
The selectors must also be patient with Aftab Ahmed who has the talent to succeed. Ahmed must learn to curb his impetuosity if he wants a permanent place in the team.
Veteran spinner Mohammed Rafique plans to call it quits after the series. The left-arm spinner probably is the best bowler for Bangladesh in their short history. However, there are a string of left-arm spinners in the side ready to don the mantle.
Mashrefe Mortaza will lead the pace attack as usual. He is the only bowler other than Rafique who can take wickets consistently.
The time has come for Bangladesh to show a bit of backbone and take the fight to the opposition. A rewind and retention of their famous victory against Australia may be just what the doctor ordered.
