Van der Dussen to Captain South Africa in Zimbabwe Tri-Series; Injury Sidelines Nortje

South Africa Announces Squad for Zimbabwe Tri-Series: Van der Dussen to Captain, Nortje Absent

South Africa has announced its squad for the upcoming T20I triangular series in Zimbabwe, featuring the return of Rassie van der Dussen, Nandre Burger, and Gerald Coetzee. The squad also welcomes Lhuan-dre Pretorius, Corbin Bosch, Rubin Hermann, and Senuran Muthusamy. However, Anrich Nortje will be absent due to injury.

Anrich Nortje sidelined with back injury © Getty

Van der Dussen, Burger, and Coetzee are returning to the national side after spells away, while Pretorius, Bosch, Hermann, and Muthusamy are in line for their first T20I caps.

South Africa will participate in a T20I triangular series next month in Zimbabwe, also involving New Zealand.

"I look forward to catching up with Rob," said Shukri Conrad, referring to New Zealand's coach. "He's got valuable insights into our squad, which makes the tri-series all the more spicy."

Van der Dussen will captain the team in the absence of Aiden Markram, who has been rested along with Marco Jansen, Keshav Maharaj, David Miller, Ryan Rickelton, Kagiso Rabada, and Tristan Stubbs.

Conrad emphasized his desire to have South Africa's best players available as often as possible, acknowledging the challenges posed by the prevalence of leagues in the modern game. The current squad selection reflects a need to manage player workload.

"The all-format players had Test series against Sri Lanka and Pakistan at home [in November and December]," Conrad explained. "Then they had the SA20 [in January and February], then they went straight into an IPL that went on for a bit longer [from March to June]. Then we had the WTC final [at Lord's this month]. Their last few months have been chock-a-block."

He added, "If you cast your eye on what the next few months look like for us, starting with this series and then a couple of days after that we go to Australia [in August, for white-ball series] and England [in September, also for white-ball rubbers], we felt it was the best thing for them to freshen up."

Burger and Coetzee return from injury, but Nortje was not considered due to a stress-related back problem. This latest setback raises concerns about the future of the fast bowler's career.

"It's the second or third stress reaction in his back," Conrad stated. "So of course it's something to be concerned about. But there's still a long way to go to make a decision in terms of how we're going to go forward. We're definitely not going to draw a line through his name."

Conrad affirmed the team's support for Nortje: "He's only 31, and we're going to give him every chance to get back on his feet and fight back. We're going to see how things develop and what the medical staff feel is the path forward and how it's going to look."

Nortje, who last played for South Africa in June 2024, has featured in less than 40% of the matches he could have played since his debut in 2019, largely due to injuries and his focus on franchise cricket.

On a positive note, Conrad praised Pretorius, highlighting his potential. "He's a special breed, the type of player who announces themselves on the biggest stage," Conrad said. "He did really well in the under-19 World Cup and he debuted in the SA20 and was phenomenal. He's played first-class cricket for the Titans, and he scored a hundred on debut and a hundred in the final. That says there's something special about him."

Pretorius was South Africa's highest run-scorer at the 2023 under-19 World Cup and this year's SA20. He also scored centuries in his first-class debut and in the final for the Titans.