"Oh yes!" Adnan Akmal, Pakistan wicket-keeper and the second of the three Akmal brothers said in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe, when asked if he had fond memories of Tahir.

"We grew up together. Actually he and my brother Kamran were really good friends."

Tahir grew up in Lahore, with the Akmals as his playmates. He played provincial cricket with seamer Aizaz Cheema, who made his debut with eight wickets for Pakistan during the recently completed test victory over Zimbabwe, and said Tahir's finest quality is how much he "enjoys his cricket".

Even Pakistan coach Waqar Younis had a kind word for Tahir, calling him a "fighter".

Perhaps Pakistan are not all that affected by Tahir's departure because of the depth of their spin department. Saeed Ajmal, with his unreadable doosra, is rated second best in the world behind Graeme Swann. Offspinner Mohammad Hafeez is destructive with the new and old ball and talented left-arm spinner Abdur Rehman and legspinner Yasir Shah have started to nail down national spots.

Pakistan's small loss has been South Africa's massive gain. It has taken the country so long to find a world-class tweaker that many of the same South Africans who sulked when Pietersen swopped one nationality for another were only too chuffed when Tahir did the same. It would not have mattered if he arrived from the moon, he would still have been welcomed like a messiah.

So far, he has lived up to his reputation. His 14 wickets at the World Cup are supposedly just the entrée and he is expected to dish up ladles of trouble for batsmen in future seasons, particularly on the test platter. That he is an automatic pick for the five tests this summer means a change of mindset has to take place in South African cricket, from the team to the groundsmen, who will have to prepare pitches that can accommodate a spinner for the first time.

It will be a juggle, between ensuring Tahir has something to work with and not handing the opposition an advantage. Both Australia and Sri Lanka bring with them interesting prospects. Young Nathan Lyon, who took six wickets in his debut test against Sri Lanka, is the latest spinner being touted to replace Shane Warne, while Sri Lanka's attack is bolstered by mystery man Ajantha Mendis.

South African summers have rarely been underlined by spin, but this season could be different. As most of the current Pakistan team will testify, Tahir is a match-winner who should be looked after. They know it is no fault of Pakistan Cricket they were unable to hold onto him because, as Adnan said: "He married a South African woman so he must do well there now."

South Africans will agree.