Quinton de Kock Ends Retirement as South Africa

South Africa will face Pakistan immediately after the Asia Cup, and the Proteas have announced their squads for the upcoming full series. The biggest surprise in the limited-overs squads is wicketkeeper-batsman Quinton de Kock, who comes out of retirement to feature against Pakistan. De Kock last played for South Africa in June during the T20 World Cup final in Barbados.

He has been included in both the ODI and T20I squads. However, Temba Bavuma, the Proteas’ Test captain, will miss the Pakistan Test series due to a muscle injury sustained during the recent white-ball series in England. Bavuma is expected to take six to eight weeks to fully recover. Aiden Markram will lead the team in his absence.

Returns and Injuries

• Off-spinner Simon Harmer returns to the South African squad after a long hiatus; his last Test appearance was in March 2023. He will join the spin department alongside Senuran Muthusamy and Prenelan Subrayen.
• Keshav Maharaj, who sustained a wrist injury in England, will only be available from the second Test onward.

Leadership in Limited-Overs

• David Miller will captain the T20I side.
• Matthieu Brits will lead the ODI team.

Ahead of the Pakistan series, South Africa will play a T20I at the new stadium in Windhoek, Namibia. Cricket South Africa (CSA) has announced a separate squad for this fixture. All-rounder Donovan Ferreira will lead the team, which includes de Kock, Nandre Burger, Gerald Coetzee, Riza Hendricks, Luan-dre Pretorius, and newcomer Rivaldo Munsami. Ferreira has also been included in the Pakistan ODI squad alongside Burger, Coetzee, and de Kock. The ODI squad sees the return of left-arm spinners George Linde and Bjorn Fortuin.

South Africa Pakistan Tour Squads

Test Squad (Pakistan Series)

• Captain: Aiden Markram
• Players: David Bedingham, Corbin Bosch, Dewald Brevis, Tony de Zorzi, Zubair Hamza, Simon Harmer, Marco Jansen, Keshav Maharaj* (from 2nd Test), Wiaan Mulder, Senuran Muthusamy, Kagiso Rabada, Ryan Rickelton, Tristan Stubbs, Prenelan Subrayen, Kyle Verreynne

T20I Squad (Pakistan Series)

• Captain: David Miller
• Players: Corbin Bosch, Dewald Brevis, Nandre Burger, Gerald Coetzee, Quinton de Kock, Donovan Ferreira, Riza Hendricks, George Linde, Quna Mafaka, Lungi Ngidi, Nakaba Peter, Luan-dre Pretorius, Andile Simelane, Lizaad Williams

ODI Squad (Pakistan Series)

• Captain: Matthieu Brits
• Players: Corbin Bosch, Dewald Brevis, Nandre Burger, Gerald Coetzee, Quinton de Kock, Tony de Zorzi, Donovan Ferreira, Bjorn Fortuin, George Linde, Quna Mafaka, Lungi Ngidi, Nakaba Peter, Luan-dre Pretorius, Sinethmba Keshile

T20I Squad (vs Namibia, Windhoek)

• Captain: Donovan Ferreira
• Players: Nandre Burger, Gerald Coetzee, Quinton de Kock, Bjorn Fortuin, Riza Hendricks, Rubin Hermann, Quna Mafaka, Rivaldo Munsami, Nakaba Peter, Luan-dre Pretorius, Andile Simelane, Jason Smith, Lizaad Williams