South Africa announced their highly-anticipated squad for the T20I series against West Indies on Wednesday. As expected, the majority of senior players are missing the team due to various reasons making way for two uncapped youngsters Kwena Maphaka and Jason Smith.
The star wicketkeeper batters Quinton de Kock and Heinrich Klassen will feature in the CPL 2024 starting on August 30 and are not included in the team. Kagiso Rabada, Keshav Maharaj and Marco Jansen are reportedly given a rest to manage their workload.
The major talking point was the inclusion of the 18-year-old let-arm pacer Kwena Maphaka. The youngster made the headlines by taking 19 wickets in the U19 World Cup and winning the Player of the Tournament earlier this year. He also snapped an IPL contract with Mumbai Indians and made two appearances without much impact.
Jason Smith, the 29-year-old top-order batter is also included in the team for the first time. T20 regulars Aiden Markram and Tristan Stubbs are both part of the team while the experienced Rassie van der Dussen came in as a surprise. Rassie was not part of the team for the recent T20 World Cup 2024 but featured against West Indies in the T20I series in May.
South Africa's coach Rob Walter said that the management is looking to develop players and tipped Maphaka and other youngsters to make an impact in the T20I series with West Indies.
"Kwena has been identified as a player with significant potential, and this tour presents a great opportunity to include him in the Proteas environment and gain valuable international experience," Rob Walter said. "This tour allows us to continue developing our player pool whilst maintaining the core of experienced players. It will also expose our emerging talent to quality international opposition, similar to the last time we played against West Indies in May."
South Africa T20I squad vs West Indies
Aiden Markram (c), Ottneil Baartman, Nandre Burger, Donovan Ferreira, Bjorn Fortuin, Reeza Hendricks, Patrick Kruger, Kwena Maphaka, Wiaan Mulder, Lungi Ngidi, Ryan Rickelton, Jason Smith, Tristan Stubbs, Rassie van der Dussen, Lizaad Williams.
