Proteas fired up by Test success in quest for T20 World Cup triumph

South Africa’s relationship with cricket World Cups has been bittersweet for decades, both for the men’s and women’s sides. This rollercoaster relationship will resume once again when the senior men’s side takes another crack at ending South Africa’s long pursuit of limited-overs World Cup success.

The Shukri Conrad-coached Proteas are one of the teams that will be watched closely by avid followers of the sport, alongside defending champions India (who are hosting with Sri Lanka), Australia and England.

Unlike in the 2024 T20 World Cup, when they were defeated in the final by ­India, the South Africans head into this tournament as world champions – albeit in another format. In mid-2025, they won their maiden World Cup when they beat Australia in the World Test Championship (WTC) decider. This achievement will be a major confidence booster for Conrad’s men, even if the steady trek to WTC glory is a completely different beast compared with the frantic nature of T20 World Cups.

That quite a few of the 15 players selected to represent South Africa at the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, which will be played from 7 February to 8 March, also featured in that historic Test final at Lord’s is a welcome bonus for Conrad and his technical team. They know what it feels like to win an international final.

These players include captain Aiden Markram, marquee bowler Kagiso Rabada, all-rounder Marco Jansen and star spinner Keshav Maharaj. Eight of the 15 players who will battle for gold in India and Sri Lanka were part of the WTC-winning team.

Winning run-in

Conrad and his charges also clinched their final T20 series before the World Cup, beating a tricky West Indies side 2-1. Skipper Markram believes that result, achieved on home soil, is exactly what the Proteas needed in their quest to finally end their shaky relationship with World Cups.

“It was a good series with lots of good signs from us. The players are in good form. It is a nice thing to have going to the World Cup. There are exciting times ahead and we are happy with where the team is at. We have got all bases covered,” Markram said.

The success of the SA20 has also significantly boosted the Proteas’ belief that they can finally bloom in a limited-overs tournament on the global stage. A number of the players who starred in the recently concluded fourth edition of South Africa’s T20 spectacle are in Conrad’s team.

“What we can take from [the series win against the West Indies] is obviously quite a bit of confidence. If you look throughout the SA20 as well, the guys did really well and put their hands up [while playing] for their respective teams,” Markram said.

Fine form

In the list of the five top run scorers, Quinton de Kock led the way with 390 from 11 innings. Belligerent youngster Dewald Brevis was second, only 20 runs behind De Kock, who reversed his retirement decision in 2025.

Other Proteas willow wielders such as Markram and Ryan Rickelton also featured in the top five of the SA20’s most prolific run scorers. Rickelton was a shining light in an MI Cape Town side that severely underperformed for a third season. However, he did not make the initial 15-man squad for the World Cup.

Rickelton was only roped in later (along with fellow batter Tristan Stubbs) after injuries to Tony de Zorzi and Donovan Ferreira ruled them out of the World Cup. The initial exclusion of the pair caused an uproar among South African supporters, considering their SA20 form, as did the exclusion of bowler Ottneil Baartman, who starred for the Paarl Royals in the latest instalment of the SA20. The pacer, who is also the all-time leading wicket-taker in the SA20’s short history, was overlooked despite a haul of 20 wickets from nine innings this season.

Conrad defended his selections amid public criticism: “Not everybody is going to be happy. Every time someone does well there’s a feeling that this person should be in the squad. But you can only fit 15 in the squad and 11 into the match-day team. You’ve got to look at different combinations. It’s really tough letting players know that they’re not going to make it.”

Conrad will take solace from knowing that he also had a number of detractors when he named his squad for last year’s WTC final tussle against Australia, yet his players eventually vindicated his selection by claiming the gold-plated mace.

The Proteas are in Group D, alongside tenacious Afghanistan and New Zealand, as well as rising nations Canada and the United Arab Emirates, for the T20 World Cup.

Their opening match is against Canada on 9 February, before they tackle Afghanistan two days later. On Valentine’s Day they have a date with New Zealand, before ending the group stage on 18 February with a clash against the UAE.

Geopolitical tensions

As far as global tournament build-ups are concerned, the 2026 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka has been one of the most tense in recent memory. The tension began with Bangladesh asking for all their World Cup fixtures to be moved to Sri Lanka because of safety concerns related to playing in India as a result of diplomatic tensions between the two countries.

The International Cricket Council (ICC) vetoed the suggestion and, with a deadlock on a resolution, it decided to exclude Bangladesh altogether, squeezing Scotland into their place. In solidarity with Bangladesh, Pakistan (which has its own geopolitical standoff with India), also considered boycotting the tournament. However, they eventually decided to participate.

The Pakistanis have said they will instead boycott their 15 February fixture against India. Pakistan will play all their other matches in Sri Lanka, not in India. The ICC chastised Pakistan’s stance, which will rob the tournament of the perennially most anticipated match at global cricket events. Apart from ICC tournaments, India and Pakistan have not played each other in more than a decade.

“ICC tournaments are built on sporting integrity, competitiveness, consistency and fairness, and selective participation undermines the ­spirit and sanctity of the competitions,” the governing body said. “While the ICC respects the roles of governments in matters of national policy, this decision is not in the interest of the global game or the welfare ­of fans worldwide, including millions in Pakistan.”

Among the 20 teams at the tournament, Italy will be the sole debutants. Their 15-man squad is a mix of homegrown talent and players such as South African-born Jon-Jon Smuts, who earned his place in the team through his wife, Judi Smuts. She has Italian ancestry, which made Smuts eligible to represent Italy. DM

This story first appeared in our weekly DM168 newspaper, available countrywide for R35.