 | |||||||||||||
| Nickname | Proteas | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Association | Cricket South Africa | ||||||||||||
| Personnel | |||||||||||||
| Test captain | Temba Bavuma | ||||||||||||
| One Day captain | Temba Bavuma | ||||||||||||
| T20I captain | Aiden Markram | ||||||||||||
| Coach | Shukri Conrad | ||||||||||||
| History | |||||||||||||
| Test status acquired | 1889 | ||||||||||||
| International Cricket Council | |||||||||||||
| ICC status | Full member (1909) | ||||||||||||
| ICC region | Africa Cricket Association | ||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||
| Tests | |||||||||||||
| First Test | v England atSt George's Park,Port Elizabeth, 12–13 March 1889 | ||||||||||||
| Last Test | v India atEden Gardens,Kolkata; 14–16 November 2025 | ||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||
| World Test Championship appearances | 3 (first in2019–2021) | ||||||||||||
| Best result | Champions (2023–2025) | ||||||||||||
| One Day Internationals | |||||||||||||
| First ODI | v India atEden Gardens,Kolkata; 10 November 1991 | ||||||||||||
| Last ODI | v Pakistan atIqbal Stadium,Faisalabad; 8 November 2025 | ||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||
| World Cup appearances | 9 (first in1992) | ||||||||||||
| Best result | Semi-finals (1992,1999,2007,2015,2023) | ||||||||||||
| T20 Internationals | |||||||||||||
| First T20I | v New Zealand atWanderers Stadium,Johannesburg; 21 October 2005 | ||||||||||||
| Last T20I | v Pakistan atGaddafi Stadium,Lahore; 1 November 2025 | ||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||
| T20 World Cup appearances | 9 (first in2007) | ||||||||||||
| Best result | Runners-up (2024) | ||||||||||||
| Official website | https://cricket.co.za/ | ||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||
| As of 16 November 2025 | |||||||||||||
TheSouth Africa men's national cricket team, also known asthe Proteas, representsSouth Africa in men'sinternational cricket and is administered byCricket South Africa. South Africa is a full member of theInternational Cricket Council. The team's nickname derives from South Africa'snational flower,Protea cynaroides, commonly known as the "King Protea". South Africa are the currentWorld Test Champions.
South Africa enteredfirst-class and international cricket at the same time when they hosted anEngland cricket team in the 1888–89 season. Initially, the team was no match forAustralia orEngland but, having gained experience and expertise, they were able to field a competitive team by the first decade of the 20th century. The team regularly played against Australia, England andNew Zealand through to the 1960s, by which time there was considerable opposition to the country'sapartheid policy. The ICC imposed an international ban on the team, commensurate with actions taken by other global sporting bodies. When the ban was imposed, South Africa had developed to a point where its team was arguably the best in the world, and even out-played Australia.
The ban remained in place until 1991, after which South Africa played againstIndia,Pakistan,Sri Lanka and theWest Indies for the first time. The team has been strong since its reinstatement, and has at several times held the number-one positions in international rankings. South Africa is also one of the most successful teams in ODI cricket, winning more than 60 per cent of their matches.[8] However, the1998 Champions Trophy was its first success in ICC-organisedlimited-overs tournaments. South Africa won the gold medal at theCommonwealth Games in1998.[9] South Africa won the2023–2025 ICC World Test Championship, beating Australia by 5 wickets in the final.
As of February 2025, the team is currently ranked 5th in ODIs, 2nd in Tests and 5th in T20Is.[10]
European colonisation of southern Africa began on Tuesday, 6 April 1652 when theDutch East India Company established a settlement called theCape Colony onTable Bay, near present-dayCape Town, and continued to expand into the hinterland through the 17th and 18th centuries. It was founded as a victualling station for the Dutch East Indies trade route but soon acquired an importance of its own due to its good farmland and mineral wealth. There was virtually no British interest in South Africa until 1795 when troops under General SirJames Henry Craig seized Cape Colony during theFrench Revolutionary War, the Netherlands having been occupied by French forces the same year. After the British seized Cape Colony a second time in 1806 to counteract French interests in the region in the course of theNapoleonic Wars, Cape Colony was turned into a permanent British settlement. As in most other parts of the world, British colonisation brought in its wake the introduction of the game ofcricket, which began to develop rapidly. The first-ever recorded cricket match in South Africa took place in 1808, in Cape Town between two service teams for a prize of one thousand rix-dollars.[11]
The oldest cricket club in South Africa is the Port Elizabeth Cricket Club, founded in 1843. In 1862, an annual fixture "Mother Country v Colonial Born" was staged for the first time in Cape Town. By the late 1840s, the game had spread from its early roots in Cape Colony and permeated theAfrikaners in the territories ofOrange Free State andTransvaal, who were descendants of the original Dutch settlers and were not considered naturally a cricket-playing people. In 1876, Port Elizabeth presented the "Champion Bat" for competition between South African towns. The first tournament was staged inPort Elizabeth. King William's Town Cricket Club won the tournament in 1876 and the following year, in 1877, too.[11]
In 1888,Sir Donald Currie sponsored the firstEnglish team to tour South Africa. It was managed byMajor R. G. Warton and captained by future Hollywood actorC. Aubrey Smith. The tour marked the advent, retrospectively, of bothfirst-class andTest cricket in South Africa. Currie donated theCurrie Cup (originally called the Kimberley Cup) that became the trophy, first won byTransvaal in 1889–90, for a national championship of the provincial teams in South Africa.[11]
In 1889, South Africa became the third test-playing nation when it played against England at Port Elizabeth[12] captained byOwen Robert Dunell.[13] Soon after, a 2nd test was played at Cape Town. However, these two matches, as was the case with all early matches involving the erstwhile 'South African XI' against all touring teams, did not receive the status of official 'Test' matches until South Africa formed theImperial Cricket Conference with England and Australia in 1906. Neither did the touring English team organised by Major Warton even claim to be representing theEnglish cricket team; the matches were marketed as 'Major Warton's XI' v/s 'South African XI' instead. Even the players who participated did not know that they had played international cricket, and the side that played South Africa was regarded to be of weak county strength. The team was captained byC. Aubrey Smith, a decent medium pacer fromSussex, and for two of the Major Warton's XI,Basil Grieve andThe Honourable Charles Coventry, the two Tests constituted their entire first-class career. Even so, the nascent, fledgling 'South African XI' was very weak, losing both tests comfortably to England, English spinnerJohnny Briggs claiming 15–28 in the second Test at Cape Town.[14] However,Albert Rose-Innes did make history by becoming the first South African bowler to take a five-wicket haul in Tests at Port Elizabeth.
South Africa's early Test record remains the worst among all current Test-playing nations with ten defeats and just a solitary draw from their first eleven tests,[15] and it was not until 1904 that they began to emerge as a quality international team. They recorded their first Test win against England in 1906, which took them 17 years. The low point of this barren early period for the South African team was anEnglish tour of 1895–96, where South Africa was humiliated 3–0 in 3 Tests by an English side for the first time remotely comparable to a full-strength team, losing all the tests by 288 runs,[16] an innings and 197 runs,[17] and by an innings and 32 runs[18] respectively. The touring English team, arranged byLord Hawke, included four of the best cricketers of the world at the time:Tom Hayward,C.B. Fry,George Lohmann andSammy Woods.
In the early 1900s, the first world-class South African cricket team emerged, comprising stars suchBonnor Middleton,Jimmy Sinclair,Charlie Llewellyn,Dave Nourse,Louis Tancred,Aubrey Faulkner,Reggie Schwarz,Percy Sherwell,Tip Snooke,Bert Vogler, andGordon White, players who were capable of giving any international teams a run for their money. In addition to possessing batsmen such as Sinclair (the batsman with the higheststrike rate in Test history), Nourse, Tancred, all-rounder Faulkner, Sherwell, Snooker, and White, the South Africans developed the world's first (and arguably greatest) spin attack which specialised ingoogly. Greatest among the South African googly quartet was Schwarz, who, inspired by English googly bowlerBernard Bosanquet, regarded as the inventor of the googly, developed into the most devastating googly bowler of his time. He taught diligently the secrets of the googly to allrounder Faulkner, medium-pacer Vogler, and specialist batsman White, and together the four formed a quartet which began to lead South Africa to unprecedented heights in Test cricket.[15] Another important force during this period for South Africa was the all-around performances of Faulkner and Llewellyn. Faulkner came to be regarded as the first great South African all-rounders in the international game, regarded by some as even the greatest all-rounder in the world in the pre-1st World War period.[19]
TheAustralian cricket teamtoured South Africa in 1902, with an extremely strong squad comprising many prominent members of 'The Golden Age of Australian Cricket' such asVictor Trumper,Joe Darling,Clem Hill,Syd Gregory,Monty Noble,Reggie Duff,Warwick Armstrong,Hugh Trumble, andErnie Jones. Though South Africa lost the 3-match Test series 2–0, they avoided defeat for the first time by drawing the first game at Johannesburg, even forcing the touring side to follow on thanks to some outstanding all-round performances from Llewellyn.[15]
In 1904, South Africa was invited by theMarylebone Cricket Club for atour of England to play a series of first-class matches, the team not being regarded as sufficiently high standard to play-official Tests. The side won ten out of their twenty-two matches, including a thrillingtie withMiddlesex, who finished among the top four in that year'sCounty Championship, due to some magic weaved by Schwarz through his googlies. He repeated his heroics against an all-England XI, whom South Africa recorded an upset victory against by 189 runs. Unfortunately, the match was not accorded official Test status.[15]
In 1906, England made a reciprocaltour to South Africa, which this time consisted of a 5-match official Test series. The touring English team was a second-string team, with onlyColin Blythe,Schofield Haigh andJN Crawford being those who could be considered regulars of the England team. Nevertheless, South Africa was still not favouriting going into the series. However, in a shocking result atJohannesburg, the inspired South Africans, led by Sherwell and their googly quartet, defeated England by 1 wicket, thereby recording her first Test win. Schwarz, Vogler, and Faulkner led the way for South Africa.[15] Afterwards, South Africa defeated England by 9 wickets in the 2nd Test at Johannesburg, a 243-run win in the 3rd test at the same venue as well as an innings-and-16 runs victory at Cape Town in the 5th Test to secure a 4–1 domination of England. Schwarz picked up 18 in the series at 17.22, Faulkner 14 at 19.42. However, Vogler was not so successful with 9 wickets at 22.33.[15] The series is widely recognised as the one which heralded the arrival of South Africa as a major force on the international cricket scene. The MCC duly complied by inviting the South African team totour England in 1907 for the first time to play-official Tests. Though the series finished 1–0 to England with two draws, the quartet of Schwarz, Faulkner, Vogler, and White were praised for their exceptional quality of googly bowling,[20] and Schwarz and Vogler came to be recognised as Wisden Cricketers of the Year the following year – the first South Africans to win the prestigiousaward.
England's nexttour of South Africa came about in 1909–10. Once again, South Africa was dominant, winning the 5-match Test series 3–2, with victories in the first Test at Johannesburg by 19 runs,[21] second Test atDurban by 95 runs,[22] and by 4 wickets in the 4th Test at Cape Town.[23] South Africa's captain wasTip Snooke.
The South African cricket teamtoured Australia for the first time in 1910–11. The Australian team was then considered as the leading cricket team of the era, in what has been described as 'The Golden Age of Australian Cricket'. Led by the legendaryClem Hill and the batting exploits ofVictor Trumper, Australia won the 5-match Test series comfortably 4–1, though South Africa made history by recording their first-ever overseas Test victory, as well as a maiden Test victory against Australia at the 3rd Test inAdelaide Oval.[24] The tour was significant for the rise ofBilly Zulch as a leading batsman of the South African cricket team; and after a resolute 150 in the 1st Test atSydney Cricket Ground in a heavy innings defeat for South Africa,[25] he scored South Africa's highest individual score of 105 in their maiden overseas Test win at Adelaide, a match also characterised by the all-round performancesCharlie Llewellyn and the outstanding bowling ofReggie Schwarz.
South Africa's next international cricketing involvement was atriangular tournament held in England, involving England, Australia, and South Africa, the only three Test-playing nations of the era. By this time, the googly duo of Schwarz and White were past their prime, while Vogler had already retired. Additionally, retirements of key players such as Sherwell ensured that South Africa was nowhere near their best in the series. South Africa finished bottom with just one draw, but the series was notable for the debut ofHerbie Taylor, regarded as one of the finest batsmen of the era. The tournament marked the international swansong for Schwarz and White. The tournament also marked the peak of the short, but moderately successful test career of medium-pacerSid Pegler, whose rise, coinciding as it did with the decline of Schwarz and Vogler, briefly caused him to hold the mantle of the lead bowler of the South African bowling attack before as well as to emerge as South Africa's leading bowler and a resounding success in the Triangular tournament, before commitments elsewhere in the form of the appointment as a colonial district commissioner inNyasaland forced him to drift out of cricket – meaning that the enormous potential that he showed in that Triangular, as well as the expectations that he could be a mainstay in the South African bowling in the coming years, were not quite fulfilled.
Prodigious batsman Herbie Taylor was named captain of the South African team to face off againstthe visiting English team in 1913–14, in what would prove South Africa's last international cricketing involvement before the First World War. Overall, the series was extremely poor for a South African side in transition, who failed to replicate the achievements of the South African sides 1905–06 and 1909–10, losing the 5-match Test series 4–0 against an extremely strong English side playing under the banner of the MCC. However, the series became memorable for Herbie Taylor's exceptional batting, who heralded his arrival as a new colossus in the world game, scoring a phenomenal 508 runs at anaverage of 50.80 against a terrificSydney Barnes at his prime, who had claimed a record 49 wickets during the seriesat just 10.93. The cricket historianH.S. Altham wrote: "The English cricketers were unanimous that finer batting than his against Barnes at his best they never hoped to see."Neville Cardus noted it was "perhaps the most skillful of all Test performances by a batsman." It also led Cardus to count Taylor as "one of the six greatest batsmen of the post-Grace period".
The war brought in its wake the temporary suspension of international cricket.The Currie Cup, which had hitherto not been held during the years ofThe Boer War (1899–1902) and on the years when England had visited as a touring team, faced cancellation during the years of war (1914–18). Cricketing activity in South Africa resumed to normal with the armistice in November 1918.
Post World War I, South Africa first hosted in 1919–20 an Australian Imperial Forces side boasting cricketers of the calibre ofJack Gregory,Herbie Collins,Bert Oldfield, andNip Pellew. The South African XI lost both of their matches against them.
Australia became the first international team to make an official tour to South Africa in 1921–22. The first two tests at Durban and Johannesburg were drawn,[26][27] with Australia sealing the series 1–0 with a 10-wicket win in the 3rd Test at Cape Town.[28][29] Herbie Taylor, who captained the South Africans, finished with 200 runs at 33.33.Claude Carter was the South Africans' leading bowler, taking 15 wickets at 21.93.[30]
The following season, in 1922–23, an English cricket teamtoured. Just like nine years, previous Taylor was at his best. In the first Test at Johannesburg, he batted at number three and in the second innings scored a superb 176, the next highest score in the match was 50.[31] Taylor's knock included 25 boundaries and was the largest by a South African against England.[32] South Africa won the Test by 168 runs, it was Taylor's first victory as captain and as a Test player.[33] He followed that in the second Test with scores of 9 and 68 as England narrowly won by one wicket.[34] In the third Test at Durban he was moved back up to open the innings, he scored 91 and shared 110 withBob Catterall. The third day's play was washed out leaving the draw inevitable in a four-day match.[35] The fourth Test was also drawn, Taylor scored 11 at number four and then moved back as the opener in the second innings made 101.Wisden wrote: "Taylor, who hit out freely when fear of defeat had gone, played a masterly game, but he had a little luck".[36] With the series still level at 1–1, the fifth and final Test was madeTimeless to ensure a winner of the series. England'sC. A. G. Russell scored two centuries in the match and South Africa were set a target fourth innings target of 344. Taylor, at number four, batted for four and a half hours over an innings of 102 however he received little support from his teammates and South Africa lost by 109 runs.[37] Taylor finished the series with 582 runs at 64.66 and was the highest scorer on either side, his total was 278 more than the next South African.[38] His series total was at the time a Test record for a captain, later surpassed byDon Bradman in 1936.[39] His three centuries in the series set a South African Test record which was only bettered in 2003/04 byJacques Kallis.[40] TheWisden report of the series recorded that "H. W. Taylor as a batsman was in a class by himself".[41] The series cemented Taylor's position as a leading batsman in the world.
With Faulkner retiring in 1924, the South Africans, who had only two quality players in Taylor and Cattrell, underwent somewhat of a barren period in the 1920s. However, the emergence of a new generation of South African cricketers, more so in their batting than in their bowling, in the 1930s such asBruce Mitchell,Xen Balaskas,Ken Viljoen,Dudley Nourse,Eric Rowan,Alan Melville,Pieter van der Bijl, andRonnie Grieveson once again ensured that South Africa became a top-quality international team. The team's leading batsmen during this era were Mitchell, Nourse, Rowan, Melville, and van der Bijl. Nourse, in particular, became famous for his hand-eye coordination and his excellent fielding, one of many to be produced by South Africa in the coming decades; natural skills which were according to legend inspired and developed by his father Dave's refusal to coach him as a youngster, demanding that he learned the rudiments of the game on his own, as he himself had. This South African team was also distinct from past South African teams in one respect: whereas the previous teams had been composed entirely of British-origin players, this team had Afrikaners like van der Bijl and Greeks such as Balaskas, regarded by wide consensus to be the greatestGreek cricketer ever.[42]
The South African cricket team toured England in 1947. AtTrent Bridge, CaptainAlan Melville andvice-captain,Dudley Nourse achieved a Test match record for a third wicket partnership of 319. The following year Nourse, 38-year-old captain ofNatal, was appointed Captain for the 1948 MCC Test matches in South Africa.[43]
They continued to play regularly againstEngland,Australia andNew Zealand until 1970.[44] The membership rules of theImperial Cricket Conference (ICC) meant that when South Africa left theCommonwealth in May 1961, they also left the ICC. Despite the rules being changed in 1964 to allow other nations to be "Associate" members, South Africa did not reapply.[45] Due to South Africanapartheid laws, which introduced legalracial segregation to the country in 1948, no non-white (defined under the legislation as either "black", "coloured" or "Indian") player was eligible to play Test cricket for South Africa.[46]
Theanti-apartheid movement led the ICC to impose a moratorium on tours in 1970.[47] This decision excluded players such asGraeme Pollock,Barry Richards andMike Procter from international Test cricket for most of their careers. It would also cause the emigration of future stars such asAllan Lamb andRobin Smith, who both played for England, andKepler Wessels, who initially played for Australia before returning to South Africa. World class cricketers of their day such asClive Rice andVintcent van der Bijl also never played Test cricket despite their strong first class records.
TheICC reinstated South Africa as a Test nation in 1991, and the team played its firstsanctioned international match since 1970 (and its first-ever One-Day International) againstIndia inCalcutta on 10 November 1991 losing by 3 wickets. South Africa's first Test match after re-admission was played against theWest Indies in April 1992. The match was played inBridgetown, Barbados and South Africa lost by 52 runs.
Since South Africa has been reinstated they have achieved mixed success and hosted theInternational Cricket CouncilCricket World Cup in 2003. However, it is widely believed[48] the sides containing the likes ofAllan Donald,Shaun Pollock,Gary Kirsten,Jacques Kallis andHansie Cronje grossly underachieved, gaining a reputation as "chokers", due to them reaching the semi-finals of theCricket World Cup four times, but failing to progress into the finals. In the second part of the 1990s, South Africa had the highest winning percentage in ODIs of any team, but they were knocked out of the 1996 World Cup in thequarter-finals, and then were eliminated on countback after tying theirsemi-final against Australia in 1999.
Their most noted international win was their win in the inauguralChampions Trophy in 1998. The team also won Commonwealth Games Gold medal in1998.
In the 2003 World Cup, South Africa was one of the favourites but was eliminated by only one run in the group stages after they had mistakenly counted the number of runs they needed. They have also had bad press for failing in vital matches in global tournaments including the2002 ICC Champions Trophy and the2007 ICC World Twenty20.[49]
WithDonald retiring, Cronje banned formatch-fixing and laterkilled in a plane crash, and Pollock also retiring from international cricket, the team once again changed shape.Graeme Smith was made captain, although following injuries to Smith andJacques Kallis,Ashwell Prince deputised as Test captain on 12 July 2006. At the age of 29, he became the firstnon-white man to captain the once all-white South African cricket team. Although thatracial quota policy, was rescinded in 2007,[50] a new rule passed in 2016 stated that the team had to have an average minimum of six Black players, of which two must be Black African, in matches over the season.[51]
With the addition of high-class players such as AB de Villiers and Hashim Amla, the South African Cricket team started rising in the ICC rankings. After many of the major players in theAustralian side that had dominated the early 2000s had retired, the number one place in theICC Test Championship was a wide-open race, withIndia andEngland having short stints as the number one side.South Africa toured England in 2012 for a three-Test series with the winner assured of being the world No. 1. South Africa went on to take the series comfortably 2–0 and claim the top spot in the rankings, a position they retained for over a full calendar year from 20 August 2012.[52] Eight days later, on 28 August 2012, South Africa became the first team to top the rankings in allthree formats of the game.[53]
In February 2014 South Africa took on Australia in a Test series, with the winner being ranked No. 1 team in the world. Australia won the series 2–1.[54] South Africa later in the year would regain the No. 1 ranking. As of 4 May 2020, South Africa is ranked 6th in Test Cricket.[55]
During this time of dominance in the Test arena, the ODI and T20I performances were far less consistent, as South Africa search for a winning formula ahead of the2014 ICC World Twenty20 and the2015 ICC Cricket World Cup. A notable ODI series loss toNew Zealand at home in January 2013, and a further loss inSri Lanka highlighted South Africa's recent difficulties. Exits from the2012 ICC World Twenty20 and the2013 ICC Champions Trophy only served to improve South Africa's reputation as 'chokers' in major tournaments. In the latter years of Smith's career, South Africa split the captaincy in the shorter forms of the game, with the ODI side being led byAB de Villiers and the T20I side byFaf du Plessis. After Smith's retirement,Hashim Amla was appointed captain of the test side, leading his side to victory in his first test in charge, inGalle in Sri Lanka.
South Africa previously had a record of failing to win world cups and was much-maligned because of this. The1992 Cricket World Cup, for example, featured a rain-affected semi-final played before the introduction of theDuckworth-Lewis rain rule. South Africa needed 22 runs from 13 balls when rain intervened. After the delay, they were left in the situation of requiring 22 runs from one ball to progress.[56] In 1996 they were eliminated in the quarter-finals despite being one of the fancied teams and having qualified first in their group. In 1999 South Africa lost in the semi-final to eventual champions Australia. The match ended in a tie with both South Africa and Australia managing 213 butAustralia advanced to the Final as Australia finished higher than South Africa in the group.[57][58][59]
South Africa hosted the2003 Cricket World Cup but failed to progress beyond the group stage due to a misunderstanding of how many runs they needed to score in a rain-affected run chase. As a result of this,Shaun Pollock resigned as captain and was replaced by young batsmanGraeme Smith, although Pollock continued to play for the team. Under Smith's leadership, South Africa has achieved some success, although they were hampered by the retirements of many star players, including fast bowlerAllan Donald and one-day specialistJonty Rhodes. As a result, they had a poor 2004, only winning against theWest Indies.
In the2007 Cricket World Cup they had a rollercoaster ride that included dominant wins overEngland, the West Indies,Ireland,Netherlands andScotland, and a narrow win overSri Lanka, but devastating losses to Australia,New Zealand and Bangladesh that cost them the No. 1 ranking. Then they bowed out in the semi-finals with their lowest ever score in a World Cup as Australia bowled them out for 149 and won by 7 wickets.
In the2011 World Cup, South Africa topped Group B with the distinction of bowling out every side they played within the 50 overs, which also included a famous victory over hosts and eventual champions India. In the quarter-final, they were beaten by New Zealand after suffering a dramatic collapse and losing eight wickets for 64 runs. Even after many setbacks, their biggest heartbreak was awaiting them in the2015 World cup semi-final where they lost to the tournament runners-up New Zealand in a rain-affected tie. Batting first South Africa posted 281–5 and set a revised target of 298 to New Zealand, thanks to an amazing batting performance byFaf du Plessis,David Miller and captainAB de Villiers. Chasing a mammoth target of 298 New Zealand got off to a flier inspired by their captainBrendon McCullum. But the real hero of the match wasGrant Elliott, who scored 84* including a second-last ball six off the then world's best bowlerDale Steyn. This saw South Africa crash out of the 2015 World Cup despite playing some fantastic cricket throughout the entire tournament. After a good world cup, South Africa went on to dominate ODI cricket in bilateral series which saw the Proteas rise to No. 1 in theICC ODI Championship.
In the2019 Cricket World Cup South Africa lost the opening match of the tournament to England and followed this up with losses to Bangladesh and India. Rained out against West Indies, they defeated Afghanistan but then lost to New Zealand and Pakistan, to end their chances of qualifying for the next stage. In the2023 Cricket World Cup South Africa reached the semi-final but lost its match against Australia who went on to win the final.
They also hold the record of the highest successful run chase and made the highest total (the latter record has been surpassed) in One-Day Internationals (438–9 in 49.5 overs), inan iconic match againstAustralia on 12 March 2006. This game is considered by many to be the greatest One-Day International ever played.[60][61][62]
In the2024 ICC Men's T20 World Cup, South Africa reached the final unbeaten, with a resounding 9-wicket win over Afghanistan in a one-sided demolition. This was the first appearance in an ICC final for the Proteas. Ultimately, they lost to India by 7 runs.[63][64][65] In 2025, South Africa beat Australia (the reigning champions) in theWorld Test Championship final, by 5 wickets, thereby becoming world Test champions.
A red box around the year indicates tournaments played withinSouth Africa
| Champions | |
| Runners-up | |
| Semi-finals |
| Year | League stage | Final Host | Final | Final Position | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pos | Matches | Ded | PC | Pts | PCT | ||||||||
| P | W | L | D | T | |||||||||
| 2019–21[66] | 5/9 | 13 | 5 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 600 | 264 | 44 | Rose Bowl, England | DNQ | 5th |
| 2021–23 | 3/9 | 15 | 8 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 180 | 100 | 55.6 | The Oval, England | DNQ | 3rd |
| 2023–25 | 1/9 | 13 | 9 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 144 | 100 | 69.44 | Lord's, England | Won | 1st |
| World Cup record | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Host and Year | Round | Position | P | W | L | T | NR | Squad |
| 1975[67] | Not eligible, South Africa were banned due toapartheid | |||||||
| 1979[68] | ||||||||
 1983[69] | ||||||||
| 1987[70] | ||||||||
 1992[70] | Semi-finals | 4/9 | 9 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 0 | Squad |
 1996[71] | Quarter-final | 5/12 | 6 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | Squad |
   1999[72] | Semi-finals | 3/12 | 9 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 0 | Squad |
   2003[73] | Group Stage | 9/14 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | Squad |
 2007[74] | Semi-finals | 4/16 | 10 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 0 | Squad |
 2011[75] | Quarter-final | 5/14 | 7 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | Squad |
| 2015[76] | Semi-finals | 4/14 | 8 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | Squad |
| 2019[77] | Group Stage | 7/10 | 9 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 1 | Squad |
| 2023[78] | Semi-finals | 3/10 | 10 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 0 | Squad |
 2027[78] | Qualified as co-hosts | |||||||
| 2031[78] | TBD | |||||||
| Total | 0 Titles | - | 74 | 45 | 26 | 1 | 2 | - |
| T20 World Cup record | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Host and Year | Round | Position | P | W | L | T | NR | Squad | |
| 2007[79] | Super 8s | 5/12 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | Squad | |
| 2009[80] | Semi-finals | 3/12 | 6 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | Squad | |
| 2010[81] | Super 8s | 7/12 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | Squad | |
| 2012[82] | Super 8s | 8/12 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | Squad | |
| 2014[83] | Semi-finals | 4/16 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | Squad | |
| 2016[84] | Super 10s | 5/16 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | Squad | |
  2021[85] | Super 12s | 5/16 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | Squad | |
| 2022[86] | Super 12s | 6/16 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | Squad | |
 2024[87] | Runners-up | 2/20 | 9 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | Squad | |
| 2026[88] | Qualified | ||||||||
| 2028[89] | TBD | ||||||||
| 2030[90] | |||||||||
| Total | 0 Titles | - | 49 | 32 | 16 | 0 | 1 | - | |
| Champions Trophy record | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Host and Year | Round | Position | P | W | L | T | NR | Squad |
| 1998[91] | Champions | 1/9 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Squad |
| 2000[92] | Semi-finals | 4/11 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | Squad |
| 2002[93] | Semi-finals | 4/12 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | Squad |
| 2004[94] | Group stage | 6/12 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | Squad |
| 2006[95] | Semi-finals | 3/12 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | Squad |
| 2009[96] | Group stage | 7/8 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | Squad |
| 2013[97] | Semi-final | 4/8 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | Squad |
| 2017[98] | Group stage | 5/8 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | Squad |
| 2025[99] | Semi-final | 3/8 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | Squad |
| 2029 | TBD | |||||||
| Total | 1 Titles | - | 28 | 14 | 12 | 1 | 1 | - |
| Commonwealth Games record | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Round | Position | P | W | L | T | NR | Squad | |
 1998[100] | Champions | 1/16 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Squad | |
| Total | 1 Title | - | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | |
Titles
Awards
West Indies) England) India)| Period | Kit manufacturer | Shirt sponsor |
|---|---|---|
| 1992–1996 | ISC | No sponsor |
| 1997–2001 | Adidas | Castle |
| ICC Cricket World Cup 1999 | Asics | Standard Bank |
| 2001–2005 | Admiral | Castle |
| 2005–2008 | Hummel | Castle |
| Standard Bank | ||
| 2008–2011 | Reebok | Castle |
| 2011–2015 | Adidas | Standard Bank |
| Castle | ||
| 2016–2021 | New Balance | Standard Bank[102] |
| No sponsor | ||
| 2021–2023 | Castore | No sponsor |
| ICC Men's Cricket World Cup 2023 | Lotto | Amul[103] |
| 2023–2025 | Lotto | Royal Green Spirits |
| 2025-2027 | Macron[104] | Suzuki |
South Africa's kits are manufactured byMacron,[105] who replaced the previous manufacturerLotto[106] in 2025.When playing Test cricket, South Africa'scricket whites feature the king protea badge (the emblem of the South African Sports Commission) with the South African flag above it on the left breast of the shirt. South African fielders may wear a green cap or a white sun hat with the king protea badge in the middle. Helmets are also coloured green. Before 1996, the cap insignia was theUnited Cricket Board of South Africa old badge, which was a circle with a ball superimposed over a wicket in the centre and the inscription which reads "UNITED CRICKET BOARD OF SOUTH AFRICA" around the circle's border. Before 1991, the cap insignia was a springbok head under the inscription "S.A.C.B" in yellow letters (which changed to "S.A." with the years of the tour, for instance, "S.A. 1982–83").
Inlimited overs cricket, South Africa's ODI and Twenty20 shirts feature the king protea badge with the national flag on the left breast of the shirt.
In ODIs, the kit comprises a green shirt with yellow accents and dark green stylised protea leaves and green trousers, whilst the Twenty20 kit comprises a green shirt with a yellow gradient and the Oxigen logo in the front and green trousers. In both uniforms, the fielding hat is a green baseball cap with white piping and a yellow line on the visor border or a green sunhat, which are both green with the king protea badge.
InICC limited-overs tournaments, a modified kit design is used with the sponsor's logos moving to the sleeve and 'South Africa' printed across the front.
Since 2016, South Africa played some matches with an all-pink version of its uniform, to raise breast cancer awareness.
Previous suppliers were ISC (1992–1996), Asics (1999), Admiral (2000–2003), Hummel (2004–2007), Adidas (2011–2015), New Balance[107] (2016–2021) and Castore[108] (2021–2023).
Until 2016, the sponsor wasCastle Lager. During the2003–04 tour of Pakistan, the Castle Lager logo was replaced by "Charles".[109]
For the 2024–25 period, CSA awarded 18 players national contracts, from which selectors choose the core of the Test, One-Day, and Twenty20 International teams.[110] Non-contracted players remain eligible for selection and can be upgraded to a Cricket South Africa contract if they gain regular selection.
This is a list of every active player who is contracted to Cricket South Africa, has played for South Africa since November 2024 or was named in the recent Test, ODI or T20I squads. Uncapped players are listed initalics.
Last updated: 8 November 2025
| Name | Age | Batting style | Bowling style | Domestic team | SA20 Team | Forms | C | S/N | Captain | Last Test | Last ODI | Last T20I |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Batters | ||||||||||||
| Temba Bavuma | 35 | Right-handed | Right-armmedium | Lions | — | Test, ODI | Y | 11 | Test, ODI (C) | 2025 | 2025 | 2023 |
| David Bedingham | 31 | Right-handed | — | Western Province | Sunrisers Eastern Cape | Test | — | 5 | 2025 | — | — | |
| Matthew Breetzke | 27 | Right-handed | — | Warriors | Durban's Super Giants | Test, ODI, T20I | — | 35 | 2025 | 2025 | 2025 | |
| Dewald Brevis | 22 | Right-handed | Right-armleg break | Titans | MI Cape Town | Test, ODI, T20I | Y | 52 | 2025 | 2025 | 2025 | |
| Tony de Zorzi | 28 | Left-handed | — | Western Province | — | Test, ODI, T20I | Y | 33 | 2025 | 2025 | 2025 | |
| Zubayr Hamza | 30 | Right-handed | Right-armleg break | Lions | — | Test | — | 39 | 2024 | 2021 | — | |
| Reeza Hendricks | 36 | Right-handed | Right-armoff break | Lions | MI Cape Town | T20I | Y | 17 | — |  2024 | 2025 | |
| David Miller | 36 | Left-handed | — | Dolphins | Paarl Royals | T20I | Y | 10 | T20I (VC) | — | 2025 | 2024 |
| Tristan Stubbs | 25 | Right-handed | Right-armoff break | Warriors | Sunrisers Eastern Cape | Test, ODI, T20I | Y | 30 | 2025 | 2025 | 2025 | |
| Rassie van der Dussen | 36 | Right-handed | Right-armleg break | Lions | MI Cape Town | ODI, T20I | Y | 72 | 2022 | 2025 | 2025 | |
| All-rounders | ||||||||||||
| Corbin Bosch | 31 | Right-handed | Right-armfast-medium | Titans | — | Test, ODI, T20I | — | 37 | 2025 | 2025 | 2025 | |
| Donovan Ferreira | 27 | Right-handed | Right armoff break | Titans | Joburg Super Kings | ODI, T20I | — | 55 | — | 2025 | 2025 | |
| Marco Jansen | 25 | Right-handed | Left-armfast | Warriors | Sunrisers Eastern Cape | Test, ODI, T20I | Y | 70 | 2025 | 2025 | 2025 | |
| George Linde | 33 | Left-handed | Left-arm orthodox | Western Province | MI Cape Town | ODI, T20I | — | 27 | 2021 | 2025 | 2025 | |
| Aiden Markram | 31 | Right-handed | Right armoff break | Titans | Sunrisers Eastern Cape | Test, ODI, T20I | Y | 4 | T20I (C); Test, ODI (VC) | 2025 | 2025 | 2025 |
| Wiaan Mulder | 27 | Right-handed | Right-armmedium | Lions | Durban's Super Giants | Test, ODI | — | 24 | 2025 | 2025 | 2024 | |
| Senuran Muthusamy | 31 | Left-handed | Left-arm orthodox | Lions | Pretoria Capitals | Test, ODI, T20I | — | 67 | 2025 | 2025 | 2025 | |
| Andile Phehlukwayo | 29 | Left-handed | Right-armmedium-fast | Dolphins | Paarl Royals | — | Y | 23 | 2018 | 2024 | 2024 | |
| Wicket-keepers | ||||||||||||
| Quinton de Kock | 32 | Left-handed | — | Lions | Durban's Super Giants | ODI, T20I | Y | 12 | 2021 | 2025 | 2025 | |
| Rubin Hermann | 28 | Left-handed | — | North West | Paarl Royals | ODI | — | 83 | — | 2025 | 2025 | |
| Lhuan-dre Pretorius | 19 | Left-handed | — | Titans | Paarl Royals | Test, ODI, T20I | Y | 80 | 2025 | 2025 | 2025 | |
| Sinethemba Qeshile | 26 | Right-handed | — | Warriors | — | ODI | — | 19 | — | 2025 | 2019 | |
| Ryan Rickelton | 29 | Left-handed | — | Lions | MI Cape Town | Test, ODI, T20I | Y | 44 | 2025 | 2025 | 2025 | |
| Kyle Verreynne | 28 | Right-handed | — | Western Province | Pretoria Capitals | Test, ODI | — | 97 | 2025 | 2025 | — | |
| Spin bowlers | ||||||||||||
| Bjorn Fortuin | 31 | Right-handed | Left-arm orthodox | Lions | Paarl Royals | ODI, T20I | Y | 77 | — | 2025 | 2025 | |
| Simon Harmer | 36 | Right-handed | Right armoff break | Titans | — | Test | — | 47 | 2025 | — | — | |
| Keshav Maharaj | 35 | Right-handed | Left-arm orthodox | Dolphins | Durban's Super Giants | Test, ODI | Y | 16 | 2025 | 2025 | 2024 | |
| Nqaba Peter | 23 | Right-handed | Right-armleg break | — | Paarl Royals | ODI, T20I | — | 91 | — | 2025 | 2025 | |
| Tabraiz Shamsi | 35 | Right-handed | Left-arm unorthodox | Titans | Joburg Super Kings | ODI | Y | 26 | 2018 | 2025 | 2024 | |
| Seam bowlers | ||||||||||||
| Ottneil Baartman | 32 | Right-handed | Right-armfast-medium | Dolphins | Paarl Royals | ODI, T20I | — | 41 | — | 2024 | 2025 | |
| Nandre Burger | 30 | Left-handed | Left-armfast-medium | Western Province | Joburg Super Kings | ODI, T20I | Y | 71 | 2024 | 2025 | 2025 | |
| Gerald Coetzee | 25 | Right-handed | Right-armfast | Titans | Joburg Super Kings | ODI, T20I | Y | 62 | 2024 | 2023 | 2025 | |
| Kwena Maphaka | 19 | Left-handed | Left-armfast | Lions | Paarl Royals | Test, ODI, T20I | — | 81 | 2025 | 2025 | 2025 | |
| Lungi Ngidi | 29 | Right-handed | Right-armfast-medium | Titans | Paarl Royals | Test, ODI, T20I | Y | 22 | 2025 | 2025 | 2025 | |
| Kagiso Rabada | 30 | Left-handed | Right-armfast | Lions | MI Cape Town | Test, ODI, T20I | Y | 25 | 2025 | 2025 | 2025 | |
| Andile Simelane | 22 | Right-handed | Right-armfast | Dolphins | Sunrisers Eastern Cape | T20I | — | 99 | — | — | 2025 | |
| Lizaad Williams | 32 | Left-handed | Right-armmedium-fast | Titans | Joburg Super Kings | ODI, T20I | — | 6 | 2022 | 2025 | 2025 | |
| Position | Name |
|---|---|
| Director of cricket | Enoch Nkwe |
| Head coach | |
| Batting coach | |
| Bowling coach | Piet Botha |
| Fielding coach |
| Preceded by | Test match playing teams 12 March 1889 | Succeeded by |
| National teams | |||||||||||||
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