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

Rassie van der Dussen, Nandre Burger, and Gerald Coetzee are set to make their return to the South African squad, alongside coach Rob Walter. The team also welcomes Lhuan-dre Pretorius, Corbin Bosch, Rubin Hermann, and Senuran Muthusamy into the T20I format, with Shukri Conrad taking charge. However, Anrich Nortje will be absent due to injury.

Anrich Nortje sidelined due to back injury. © Getty

Van der Dussen's last appearance for South Africa was in March, Burger in August, and Coetzee in November. Pretorius, Bosch, Hermann, and Muthusamy are all in line to potentially earn their first T20I caps. Conrad, who has been South Africa's red-ball coach since January 2023, will lead the team in the white-ball format, a role he took over from Walter in May.

The T20I triangular series against Zimbabwe and New Zealand is scheduled to take place next month.

"I look forward to catching up with Rob," Conrad stated during a press conference on Thursday. "We've been chatting, and we're going to share a nice sparkling water. He's got valuable insights into our squad, which makes the tri-series all the more spicy."

With Aiden Markram, Marco Jansen, Keshav Maharaj, David Miller, Ryan Rickelton, Kagiso Rabada, and Tristan Stubbs all rested, Van der Dussen will take on the captaincy.

Conrad has expressed his desire to have South Africa's best players available as often as possible, a challenge given the crowded international cricket calendar.

"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 further 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."

While Burger and Coetzee have recovered from their respective injuries, Nortje was not considered for selection due to a stress-related back problem. This injury raises concerns about the future of the fast bowler's career.

"It's the second or third stress reaction in his back," Conrad said. "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 emphasized, "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 earned 83 international caps since his debut in March 2019. However, he has only featured in less than 40% of the matches South Africa has played since then, due to injuries and his focus on franchise cricket.

On a positive note, Pretorius is on the verge of making his international debut. "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 a century on his first-class debut and in the final for the Titans.