Cricket South Africa (CSA) has announced the official appointment of Laura Wolvaardt as captain of the Proteas Women for all three formats along with the 15-player T20 International (T20I) squad set to face Bangladesh in the white ball tour on home soil between 03 – 23 December.
Wolvaardt takes over the reins full-time after a successful tenure as interim captain during the recent tours against Pakistan and New Zealand where she led from the front with the bat, helping her team to back-to-back 2-1 ODI series victories.
At the age of 24, Wolvaardt has already appeared in 86 One-Day Internationals (ODI) and 59 T20Is, recording 3,421 runs with 30 fifties and four hundreds in the 50-over format, in addition to 1,313 runs at an average of 32.82 with nine half-centuries in T20Is.
In the T20I series between 03 – 08 December, the newly appointed South African captain will oversee a squad blended with youth and know-how, with a sprinkle of rising talent as SA U19 and SA Emerging stars Ayanda Hlubi and Eliz-Mari Marx earn their maiden international call-ups in the shorter format.
Returning to the national fold for the first time since injuring her hand during the winter is Six Gun Grill Garden Route Badgers all-rounder Annerie Dercksen, who gets a reward for solid performances at domestic and Emerging level at the start of the new season.
Among the centrally contracted players not available for the T20I series are fast bowler Ayabonga Khaka (knee injury) and all-rounders Chloè Tryon (groin) and Nadine de Klerk (side strain). Meanwhile, experienced campaigner Marizanne Kapp is rested for the T20Is and will return for the crucial ODI series.
The Proteas Women squad that will compete in the three-match One-Day series will be announced ahead of the 50-over encounters which are being held in East London, Potchefstroom and Benoni between 16 – 23 December. The ODI matches form part of the ICC Women’s Championship 2022-25 (IWC) in pursuit of qualification for the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2025.
Proteas Women T20I Squad vs Bangladesh (2023/24):
Anneke Bosch (Fidelity Titans), Tazmin Brits (Six Gun Grill Garden Route Badgers), Annerie Dercksen (Six Gun Grill Garden Route Badgers), Mieke de Ridder (Six Gun Grill Garden Route Badgers), Lara Goodall (Western Province), *Ayanda Hlubi (Hollywoodbets Dolphins), Sinalo Jafta (DP World Lions), Masabata Klaas (Fidelity Titans), Suné Luus (Fidelity Titans), *Eliz-Mari Marx (Fidelity Titans), Nonkululeko Mlaba (Hollywoodbets Dolphins), Tumi Sekhukhune (DP World Lions), Nondumiso Shangase (Hollywoodbets Dolphins), Delmi Tucker (Western Province), Laura Wolvaardt (Fidelity Titans)
*Uncapped players
Proteas Women Convenor of Selectors, Clinton du Preez commented:
“Having Laura Wolvaardt as the official captain, together with a blend of young and experienced players bodes well for our succession planning. It will also assist within the excitement we have around the squad in giving young players an opportunity and therefore we are looking forward to seeing them put up their hand and make impactful performances in this upcoming tour.
“A few of our senior players are not available for the T20-leg of the Bangladesh Tour due to injury and those returning from the Women’s Big Bash League (WBBL). We are excited to provide an opportunity to our extended identified group, especially on the back of some injuries. This allows us to have an indepth look at players for the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup taking place next year in Bangladesh.
“The inclusion of Ayanda Hlubi and Eliz-Mari Marx gives great confidence to rewarding performances at the professional level. They have been instrumental with their domestic performances in the past season for their respective provinces,”
Proteas Women head coach, Hilton Moreeng said:
“From our perspective, it is about continuing the good work that has been done. We know we are playing against Bangladesh who just came off a very successful tour against Pakistan.
“For the T20Is, this is where we are going to look, where possible, to blend in youngsters and give an opportunity to expose them at this level to keep growing the base. Overall, we have a lot of good youngsters coming through and the squad is becoming stronger and stronger every day with a more challenging environment, so we as a team are looking forward to that.
“It’s another opportunity for some of these youngsters to show what they can do while not losing sight of what we want to achieve overall when it comes to the entire tour,” the head coach concluded.
Audio featuring Proteas Women head coach Hilton Moreeng may be downloaded here.
Fixtures – South Africa Inbound Tour vs Bangladesh 2023/24
T20 International Series:
Sunday, 03 December @ 14h00 SAST
1st T20I – South Africa vs Bangladesh (Willowmoore Park, Benoni)
Wednesday, 06 December @ 18h00 SAST
2nd T20I – South Africa vs Bangladesh (Kimberley Oval, Kimberley)
Friday, 08 December @ 18h00 SAST
3rd T20I – South Africa vs Bangladesh (Kimberley Oval, Kimberley)
50-over Warm-Up Match:
Tuesday, 12 December @ 10h00 SAST
SA Emerging vs Bangladesh XI (Mangaung Oval, Bloemfontein)
One-Day International Series – ICC Women’s Championship:
Saturday, 16 December @ 14h00 SAST
1st ODI – South Africa vs Bangladesh (Buffalo Park, East London)
Wednesday, 20 December @ 14h00 SAST
2nd ODI – South Africa vs Bangladesh (JB Marks Oval, Potchefstroom)
Saturday, 23 December @ 14h00 SAST
3rd ODI – South Africa vs Bangladesh (Willowmoore Park, Benoni)
