South Africa's white-ball head coach, Rob Walter announced the 15-player squad for the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023 on Tuesday, 5 September. Temba Bavuma will lead the side in his first 50-over World Cup, and is one of eight players who have earned their maiden World Cup call-ups.
The experienced Kagiso Rabada will spearhead the bowling attack, which also includes the exciting trio of Anrich Nortje, Lungi Ngidi and Gerald Coetzee. Given that the tournament is taking place in India, spinners are expected to play a vital role due to the suitable subcontinental conditions. The squad comprises of at least three spin options in Keshav Maharaj, Tabraiz Shamsi and Aiden Markram.
The batting unit will be led by experienced batters such as Quinton de Kock, Reeza Hendricks, Heinrich Klaasen, Aiden Markram, David Miller, and Rassie van der Dussen. All-rounders Marco Jansen and Sisanda Magala complete the squad.
South Africa will kick off their World Cup campaign against Sri Lanka on 7 October at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi. Prior to that, they have warm-up games scheduled against Afghanistan on 29 September and New Zealand on 2 October.
Quinton de Kock To Retire From ODI Cricket After World Cup
Meanwhile, ace batter and wicket-keeper Quinton De Kock is set to retire from ODI cricket after this tournament.
South Africa Director of Cricket, Enoch Nkwe said, “Quinton de Kock has been a really good servant to South African cricket. He set the benchmark with his attacking batting style and was a key member of the squad for a number of years.”
"He also wore the captain’s armband and that is an honor that very few people get to hold. We understand his decision to step back from ODI cricket and we want to thank him for his service over the years. We wish him well for the future but still look forward to seeing him represent the Proteas in T20I cricket,” he added.
De Kock made his debut in the team way back in 2013 and played 140 matches so far. Averaging 44.85 and with a strike rate of 96.08 De Kock has scored 5966 runs. He has 17 hundreds and 29 fifties to his name with a high score of 178 that came against Australia at Centurion in 2016
As a wicket-keeper, he has 183 catches and 14 stumpings. De Kock also captained South Africa in eight ODIs, out of which they won four and lost three.
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