The South African cricket team toured England in the second half of the 1965 season, winning the three match Test series 1-0, with two matches drawn. They had a young and improving side. Their players included Graeme Pollock and his brother Peter, Colin Bland and Eddie Barlow.
The Pollock brothers were mainly responsible for their win by 94 runs in the Second Test at Trent Bridge. In overcast conditions, ideal for Tom Cartwright in particular, Graeme scored 125 out of 160 in 140 minutes, the last 91 coming in 70 minutes. He had come in at 16-2, and the score had declined to 80-5, before his partnerships with the captain, Peter van der Merwe, and Richard Dumbrill enabled the score to reach 269. He made another 59 in the second innings. His brother contributed bowling figures of 5-53 and 5-34.