ANRICH Nortjé’s long-awaited return to the green-and-gold Proteas colours has taken another hit, as the fast bowler missed out on South Africa’s T20I squad for the upcoming Tri-Series against hosts Zimbabwe and New Zealand from July 14-26.
Coach Shukri Conrad made it clear that he wanted Nortjé to return during last summer’s inbound tour of Pakistan, with the hope of featuring him in the World Test Championship final at Lord’s.
The fast bowler couldn’t make his return, however, due to an injury.
Similarly, the 31-year-old has missed out on the upcoming Tri-Series due to a stress reaction.
Conrad told the media yesterday that Nortjé would have been in the squad had he not picked up the injury.
Another key player in wrist-spinner Tabraiz Shamsi has not been included, while spinners Nqaba Peter, George Linde and Senuran Muthusamy got the nod instead.
“Anrich, unfortunately, has another stress reaction; he didn’t go to the MLC (Major League Cricket). So, that’s unfortunate. If he were going to the MLC, he would definitely have been in the squad. Shammo, well, he and I are going to have a chat sometime this week still,” said Conrad.
“The guys that are in this squad have definitely got the inside lane. We’ve got three spinners included in this squad. So, those are the three front-line spinners for the 2026 T20 World Cup.”
Proteas Men’s head coach Shukri Conrad has named a 14-player squad for the upcoming T20 International (T20I) tri-series against hosts Zimbabwe and New Zealand, set to take place in Harare from 14 – 26 July.
Rassie van der Dussen will captain the side, which features four maiden… pic.twitter.com/4TCWkqlIKE
— Proteas Men (@ProteasMenCSA) June 26, 2025
Conrad revealed that it is still unclear how long Nortjé will be out for.
“We actually don’t know how long. But the medical team has got that under control, so we have to see how things pan out there with regards to the length of time that he potentially could be out and the extent of that injury,” the coach said.
“I really feel for Ana. He’s a superstar fast bowler, and him just having to deal with setback after setback, that can’t be easy.”
While Nortjé is out with an injury, two fast bowlers, Nandré Burger and Gerald Coetzee, make their return to international cricket after recovering from a lumbar stress fracture and a groin injury, respectively.
Their returns means that the Proteas fast-bowling engine is looking as strong as ever, considering that the likes of Kagiso Rabada and Marco Jansen have been rested.
“Nandré also, the last time he played might have been last year, in October, in the UAE. The MLC was always going to be the litmus test for him in terms of how he stands up there and how he gets through it, and thankfully, he’s getting through that nicely,” said Conrad.
“Having his pace, someone that swings the ball upfront, can bowl at the death, bowl in middle periods, that’s exciting for us.
“It’s great to start having a semblance of what our fast-bowling stocks could look like when all of the guys are fit and ready to play.”
Batters Lhuan-dre Pretorius and Rubin Hermann, along with spin-bowling all-rounder Senuran Muthusamy, have received their maiden T20 call-ups.
Dewald Brevis makes his return to the T20 set-up, having last played in 2023.
Proteas T20I Squad
Rassie van der Dussen (captain), Corbin Bosch, Dewald Brevis, Nandré Burger, Gerald Coetzee, Reeza Hendricks, Rubin Hermann, George Linde, Kwena Maphaka, Senuran Muthusamy, Lungi Ngidi, Nqaba Peter, Lhuan-dre Pretorius, Andile Simelane.
