England won the toss and sent South Africa in to bat on the first day of the second Test at Headingley on Thursday.
England left out off-spinner Graeme Swann, opting for an all-seam attack with Steven Finn replacing Swann.
In the other change from the side that lost the first Test at the Oval by an innings and 12 runs, batsman James Taylor earned his first cap in place of the unavailable Ravi Bopara.
England need to win the match if they are to take the three-match series, while South Africa have an opportunity to go to number one on the Test rankings if they come out on top.
The pitch had a good covering of grass on a partly cloudy day.
England: Andrew Strauss (capt), Alastair Cook, Jonathan Trott, Kevin Pietersen, Ian Bell, James Taylor, Matt Prior (wkt), Tim Bresnan, Stuart Broad, James Anderson, Steven Finn.
South Africa: Graeme Smith (capt), Alviro Petersen, Hashim Amla, Jacques Kallis, AB de Villiers (wkt), Jacques Rudolph, JP Duminy, Vernon Philander, Dale Steyn, Morne Morkel, Imran Tahir.
Umpires: Steve Davis, Rod Tucker (both AUS)
TV umpire: Asad Rauf (PAK)
Match referee: Jeff Crowe (NZL)