Laura Wolvaardt is looking forward to what she described as a “cool” opportunity to sponge knowledge off her male Proteas colleagues during the five-match double-header T20 International series in New Zealand.
The first matches will be played in Mt Maunganui on Sunday, with Wolvaardt’s side taking on Amelia Kerr’s New Zealand team, followed by Keshav Maharaj, leading a much-changed Proteas men’s team against his Black Caps counterpart Mitchell Santner’s group.
Like the South African men, the New Zealanders, who defeated the Proteas in the T20 World Cup semifinals two weeks ago, have also lined up a young group for the T20 series.
“It is very cool,” said Wolvaardt of a series in which all five matches will be played alongside one another. “It is a cool way to tap into [the men’s team’s] knowledge as well. They have experienced players and coaches. You feel like one big team. And then to see how they go about things is cool.”
Maharaj, who is captaining an inexperienced group that includes four players who’ve not played at an international level, and another in Prenenalen Subrayen, who hasn’t featured in a T20 International.
The Lions’ Conor Esterhuizen, the Warriors’ Jordan Hermann, North West all-rounder Dian Forrester, and 19-year-old Dolphins seamer Nqobani Mokoena, who impressed during the SA20, will be desperate to make an impression in the next week.
“The guys have settled in nicely; they’re asking a lot of questions. There were 13 players at optional practice [Saturday], which tells you about the energy in the group, but it’s not about impressing anyone. There’s a reason that they are here; it’s about expressing their skill and doing what they did to warrant their selection,” said Maharaj.
While the men are coming off a World Cup, the women are at the opposite stage of their planning cycle, looking ahead to a T20 World Cup in England in June. Kerr’s side are the defending champions — having defeated South Africa in the final of the 2024 tournament in Dubai, in which she was the player of the match.
For Wolvaardt, the series provides an opportunity to test combinations and get some game time into a few young players, including seam bowler Ayanda Hlubi and all-rounder Kayla Reyneke. “The main focus is the World Cup, which is right around the corner,” said Wolvaardt. “Five games give you the chance to try a few combinations. You can tweak a few things here or there.”
After the T20s the women will stay in New Zealand for a three-match ODI series that is part of the ICC Women’s Championship, which determines the automatic qualifiers for the 2029 World Cup.
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