Durban - Skipper Graeme Smith has apologised to the nation for not returning to South Africa after the country's exit at the 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup.
Smith also announced his decision to stay on as Test captain.
"With the benefit of hindsight, my decision to not return home directly after the World Cup should have been explained sooner. I apologise and make no excuses for it but I ask the South African fans to understand that I was feeling incredibly emotional at the time," said Smith.
He said prior to the World Cup, he had asked permission to go onto Ireland to attend to a personal matter.
"At the time, I had faced a full media schedule and felt that signalled the end to the campaign. What I did not take into account was the public's reaction to this decision. I shared my team's - and the public's - high hopes for a successful World Cup campaign, but ultimately, the tournament didn't go our way," said Smith.
He added he is extremely positive about the Proteas as they set about challenging India for their No. 1 Test ranking.
"This must be our priority target for the season ahead. As soon as the new national coach is named, I will work out a programme with him to get my game back to the level I expect of myself," said Smith.
The skipper acknowledged that there is still more work to do with the top order who didn't live up to expectations during the World Cup.
"It's easy to debate the merits of our strategic decisions in the aftermath of the tournament, but had we won the World Cup, those very same decisions would have been lauded. I am still convinced that we adopted the right strategy in deciding to play with three specialist spinners in addition to two strike pace bowlers.
"This meant that all of our lower order probably had to bat one place too high but, with the exception of the game against India, which we nevertheless still won, it meant that the outstanding performance of our attack enabled our bowlers to restrict the opposition to very gettable targets," said Smith.
He added that South African fans will once more lend the team their support as the Proteas seek to make a fresh start.
