Jacques Rudolph has told South African journalists that he has regained his love for the game of cricket after playing for Yorkshire and he believes he is a far better player after a successful stint in English county cricket.

The 30-year-old Rudolph played his last test for the Proteas in August, 2006 when he took to the field against Sri Lanka in Colombo and will make his return to the test team when South Africa play Australia in Cape Town on November 9.

Rudolph said that he had grown disillusioned with cricket but that a successful stint with Yorkshire had rekindled his desire: “My personal motivation was to try and get my game back to the point of enjoyment and be passionate about my game again so I can enjoy the later part of my international career. I’m really enjoying the challenge and it’s always nice to represent your country,” he told a press conference on Thursday.

“It’s been a very long sabbatical for me. I did make the decision in 2006/2007 (to go to Yorkshire) and made it clear I was at the stage in my career where I needed to get my joy back for the game and playing for Yorkshire for the last five years has certainly done that.”

Rudolph has forced his way back into the Test side with runs galore for Titans where in four SuperSport series matches he has scored 592 runs at an average of 74 with three fifties and two centuries with a top score of 210.

Rudolph was hugely popular with Yorkshire supporters and said that his spell in county cricket had done wonders for his game: "The whole county experience and playing in England accounts for the fact that I am where I am today. I think I’m far more mature that I was a few years ago and I know my game pretty well now. It was a nice opportunity to play county cricket. A lot of youngsters should do that, you learn a lot about your game. I’m 30 years old now and I am really enjoying my game and I can possibly see myself playing for another couple of years.”

JAMES BUTTLER