U19 star Kwena Maphaka earns maiden call-up as South Africa announce T20I squad for West Indies tour

South Africa’s Kwena Maphaka had won Player of the Tournament award at U19 World Cup 2024.

Cricket South Africa (CSA), on Wednesday, 14th August, announced a fresh-looking squad for the upcoming T20I series against the West Indies.

Young speedster Kwena Maphaka, who won Player of the Tournament in the U-19 World Cup 2024, earned maiden national call-up for the three-match series against the Caribbean side. The exciting series will be played from August 24 to August 28.

South Africa’s last outing in the shortest format saw them reaching the finals of the ICC T20 World Cup 2024 in June. The Proteas had an unbeaten run until they suffered a heartbreaking defeat against the Indian cricket team in the championship match.

The Proteas will now gear up for the upcoming West Indies T20I series. Surprisingly, a number of big names including Quinton de Kock, Kagiso Rabada, Keshav Maharaj, Tabraiz Shamsi, and David Miller, are missing from the list.

South Africa’s white-ball coach Rob Walter provides an update for the absence of big names

South Africa cricket team white-ball coach Rob Walter said that several players were not considered for the three-match T20I series against the West Indies due to injury concerns or workload management.

The Proteas white-ball coach Walter further said that this Caribbean tour will allow young South African talents to get much-needed international experience.

“Several players were not considered for this series due to either injury, being in a conditioning block that is related to workload management, or their participation in ongoing T20 leagues,” Ron 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 the West Indies in May,” Walter added.

Excited to have Jason Smith and Kwena Maphaka: Rob Walter

Young speedster Maphaka had a stellar run at the U19 World Cup 2024. The Proteas cricketer bagged 21 wickets at an average of 9.71. Kwena also made his Indian Premier League debut for the Mumbai Indians in the 2024 edition.

Meanwhile, middle-order batter Jason Smith, who had a good run with the bat for the Dolphins in the CSA T20 Challenge in 2023-24 scoring 291 runs at an average of 41.57 in the competition, also earned his maiden T20I call-up.

South Africa white-ball coach Rob Walter was excited to see Jason and Kwena joining the squad for the West Indies T20I series.

“We’re excited to have Jason [Smith] and Kwena [Maphaka] join the squad for this series. Jason’s recent performances have been impressive, and his ability to contribute with both bat and ball adds valuable depth to our line-up,” Walter said

“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 added.

South Africa squad for T20I series in the West Indies

Aiden Markram (capt), 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

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