Proteas legend Allan Donald believes South Africa’s recent mauling in India will give England plenty of hope of victory in the Test series which starts on Boxing Day.

‘This is a rampant England side coming off the back of an Ashes win so I reckon they would look at this whole thing and think they could turn South Africa over,’ Donald tells the Daily Mail of London.

‘You always know it’s going to be tough in India but this was a different scenario. They have got some selection problems, especially in the top order,’ he said.

But Donald, who was England’s bowling consultant in 2007, conceded that it would be ‘very, very tough’.

‘South Africa are not the No 1 Test team in the world for nothing and they know how to win in their backyard.’

He believes it will all come down to momentum. If England start well, they can go all the way. ‘It’s going to be tight and it’s how South Africa start… if they don’t start well, it’s going to be a long series for them.’

England have been heartened by South Africa’s recent 3-0 series loss in India, where their highest total posted was a mere 214 amid a succession of embarrassing batting collapses.