CRAIG Kieswetter, the man charged with becoming England's next big-hitting one-day opener, has described Somerset team-mate Marcus Trescothick as a "massive influence" on his career.

Trescothick was perhaps England's most accomplished limited-overs batsman in the years before his stress-related retirement in 2006.

His muscular style and aggressive approach have never really been adequately replaced at the top of the order but the 34-year-old Somerset captain may have played a part in fashioning his own successor.

Kieswetter, who was promoted from Lions status to senior squad member for the tour of Bangladesh last week, has played with Trescothick at Taunton for the last four years and he believes his county team-mate has had a big hand in his development.

"Tres is always helpful. He's been a massive influence and a massive help," said Kieswetter. "He loves the game of cricket and loves to see youngsters coming through."

Asked what he had gleaned from his years with Trescothick on the domestic circuit, Kieswetter said: "Tres hits the ball pretty hard, I can tell you that. He's pretty keen on keeping things simple, always backing your ability and taking the attack to the bowler, keeping the pressure on them.

"Tres had his era when he was a ferocious (international) batsman and I see this as my opportunity, of course."

Kieswetter joins an England side that already has a considerable South African presence, with Kevin Pietersen, Jonathan Trott and Matt Prior all born in the country.

Proteas captain Graeme Smith is actively seeking to stem the flow of talent from South Africa to England and once made overtures to Kieswetter to return. But, where Pietersen left behind his homeland on pragmatic grounds after experiencing difficulties with the nation's quota system, Kieswetter's link with the UK extends to his childhood.

"It has never been a political thing or a quota thing for me," he said. "My mother is British and I lived a couple of months every year in Britain with my mother's side of the family. I've always loved the country, the culture, the people. I moved over four years ago and it's never been a concern of mine to move back.

"I loved the place growing up and when I became 18 – a legal adult in the world – I decided that is where I wanted to live, to make my career. I wanted to make my future in the country and I have."