Maiden Proteas call-ups for Mpongwana, Bedingham and Burger for India tour

Cricket South Africa (CSA) on Monday named the Proteas squads for the all-format inbound tour against India from 10 December to 7 January.

The tour, also known as the Freedom Series, comprises three KFC T20 Internationals (T20Is), three Betway One-Internationals (ODIs) and two Betway test matches.

Western Province trio Mihlali Mpongwana, David Bedingham and Nandre Burger have earned their maiden call-ups to the national set-up.

Fast bowler Burger is rewarded for his outstanding all-round form this season by being named in all three squads, while batter Bedingham is picked in the test squad. Allrounder Mpongwana, meanwhile, has been named in the ODI squad following a successful CSA Division 1 One-Day Cup campaign where he recorded his maiden List A ton and took 3/32 in the final against North West Dragons in October.

Dafabet Warriors batter Tristan Stubbs has been included in the test squad for the first time. The 23-year-old, who is already capped in both white-ball formats, impressed with his 117 for South Africa A against Sri Lanka earlier this year and most recently struck 130 against DP World Lions in the last round of CSA 4-Day Domestic Series matches.

Province wicketkeeper Kyle Verreynne has been recalled to the ODI and test squads. The 26-year-old last featured for the Proteas in the test series against Australia in January and has since led Province to the One-Day Cup title and enjoyed success in this season’s four-day competition with 275 runs in three matches at an average of 68.75 and a top score of 150.

Other notable selections include Hollywoodbets Dolphins seam bowler Ottniel Baartman in the white-ball squads and DP World Lions allrounder Wiaan Mulder in the ODI and test squads.

ODI captain Temba Bavuma and Kagiso Rabada are among a group of players that have been omitted for the white-ball leg of the tour in order to play red-ball cricket as emphasis is placed on the test series for which both will return.

Gerald Coetzee, Marco Jansen and Lungi Ngidi will miss the 3rd T20I and ODI series and will instead, together with Bavuma and Rabada, play in the round of first-class matches for their respective domestic teams from 14 - 17 December in preparation for the test series.

T20I captain Aiden Markram will captain the ODI side in Bavuma’s absence.

Momentum Multiply Titans fast bowler Lizaad Williams suffered a groin strain during this past weekend’s four-day match against Province. He will undergo further medical assessments this week to determine the extent of the injury.

🟢 SQUAD ANNOUNCEMENT 🟡

CSA has today named the Proteas squads for the all-format inbound tour against India from 10 Dec – 7 Jan 🇿🇦🇮🇳

Captain Temba Bavuma and Kagiso Rabada are amongst a group of players that have been omitted for the white-ball leg of the tour in order to… pic.twitter.com/myFE24QZaz
— Proteas Men (@ProteasMenCSA) December 4, 2023

Meanwhile, Anrich Nortje (lower back stress fracture) and Wayne Parnell (left shoulder) were not considered for selection as they are still undergoing rehabilitation for their respective injuries.

The T20I squad will get together in Durban on Thursday, 7 December.

PROTEAS T20I SQUAD AGAINST INDIA

Aiden Markram (captain, Momentum Multiply Titans), Ottniel Baartman (Hollywoodbets Dolphins), Matthew Breetzke (Dafabet Warriors), Nandre Burger (Western Province), Gerald Coetzee (Momentum Multiply Titans, 1st and 2ndT20Is), Donovan Ferreira (Momentum Multiply Titans), Reeza Hendricks (DP World Lions), Marco Jansen (Dafabet Warriors, 1st and 2nd T20Is), Heinrich Klaasen (Momentum Multiply Titans), Keshav Maharaj (Hollywoodbets Dolphins), David Miller (Hollywoodbets Dolphins), Lungi Ngidi (Momentum Multiply Titans, 1st and 2nd T20Is), Andile Phehlukwayo (Hollywoodbets Dolphins), Tabraiz Shamsi (Momentum Multiply Titans), Tristan Stubbs (Dafabet Warriors), and Lizaad Williams (Momentum Multiply Titans).

PROTEAS ODI SQUAD AGAINST INDIA

Aiden Markram (captain, Momentum Multiply Titans), Ottniel Baartman (Hollywoodbets Dolphins), Nandre Burger (Western Province), Tony de Zorzi (Western Province), Reeza Hendricks (DP World Lions), Heinrich Klaasen (Momentum Multiply Titans), Keshav Maharaj (Hollywoodbets Dolphins), Mihlali Mpongwana (Western Province), David Miller (Hollywoodbets Dolphins), Wiaan Mulder (DP World Lions), Andile Phehlukwayo (Hollywoodbets Dolphins), Tabraiz Shamsi (Momentum Multiply Titans), Rassie van der Dussen (DP World Lions), Kyle Verreynne (Western Province) and Lizaad Williams (Momentum Multiply Titans).

PROTEAS TEST SQUAD AGAINST INDIA

Temba Bavuma (captain, DP World Lions), David Bedingham (Western Province), Nandre Burger (Western Province), Gerald Coetzee (Momentum Multiply Titans), Tony de Zorzi (Western Province), Dean Elgar (Momentum Multiply Titans), Marco Jansen (Dafabet Warriors), Keshav Maharaj (Hollywoodbets Dolphins), Aiden Markram (Momentum Multiply Titans), Wiaan Mulder (DP World Lions), Lungi Ngidi (Momentum Multiply Titans), Keegan Petersen (Gbets Rocks), Kagiso Rabada (DP World Lions), Tristan Stubbs (Dafabet Warriors) and Kyle Verreynne (Western Province).

“We are excited to announce the latest squad of players who will represent the Proteas in white-ball cricket against India in the coming weeks,” limited-overs head coach, Rob Walter, said. “After an excellent overall showing at the recently concluded ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup, we want to capitalise on that momentum and continue building on our core group during this Freedom Series.

“We have a busy summer ahead starting with the T20Is and then ODIs against India and we have therefore taken the decision to omit several of our senior players. This decision was taken together with coach Shukri as we place emphasis on the red-ball leg of the tour meaning they will instead be preparing for the test series by playing domestic cricket. In saying that, the move has presented opportunities for others that have been performing well on domestic level to be drafted in.

“We are looking forward to seeing what they can do, the likes of Nandre Burger, the leading wicket-taker in the One-Day Cup as well as Donovan Ferreira and Mihlali Mpongwana. We also have others back in the national fold such as Wiaan Mulder and Ottniel Baartman, so it is exciting to see how they will get on.

“We are anticipating a very good series against a strong India team and cannot wait to get started in Durban on Sunday.”

Test head coach Shukri Conrad added: “It is the start of a new ICC World Test Championship cycle and that itself is a huge incentive for everyone. The playing field is level and we want to try and ensure we make a strong start to this sequence here at home against one of the best teams in the world.

“We have a near full-strength squad to pick from and that in itself is a real boost for us. We have also added some new and exciting faces such as David Bedingham, Nandre Burger and Tristan Stubbs, who make the test squad for the first time. There are others that are also back in the fold after going back to their unions and returning with impressive performances.

“Overall we believe this group has all the attributes to deliver on our objective, which is to maintain our proud record against India in South Africa.”

TOUR ITINERARY

KFC T20I Series

Sunday, 10 December

South Africa v India - Hollywoodbets Kingsmead Stadium, Durban

Tuesday, 12 December

South Africa v India – Dafabet St George’s Park, Gqeberha

Thursday, 14 December

South Africa v India - DP World Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg

BETWAY ODI SERIES

Sunday, 17 December - Betway Pink Day

South Africa v India - DP World Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg

Tuesday, 19 December