Proteas star reverses retirement, returns for Pakistan tour

South Africa's multi-format tour of Pakistan will see new leaders in the mix, with Aiden Markram captaining the Test outfit, Matthew Breetzke the skipper for ODIs, and the experienced David Miller in charge of the T20I leg.

The big news in the squad announcement was the return of Quinton de Kock, with the wicketkeeper-batter having reversed his ODI retirement. He is a part of South Africa's squads in the ODI and T20I formats.

De Kock had retired from ODIs at the end of the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup 2023 and had not represented South Africa in any format following the conclusion of the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2024.

De Kock's return is crucial as the Proteas turn their attention to the upcoming white-ball challenges – the 2026 Men's T20 World Cup and the Men's Cricket World Cup in 2027.

The World Test Championship holders will play their first Test on 12 October in Lahore, followed by a second outing in Rawalpindi on 20 October. This will be followed by three ODIs and the same number of T20Is.

The Proteas also announced a young outfit for a one-off T20I against Namibia, where the side will be led by Donovan Ferreira.

Full-time Test and ODI captain Bavuma is still recovering from a left grade two calf strain sustained during the team's tour of England.

South Africa also announced that spinner Keshav Maharaj will only be available for the second Test of the tour. The spin duties will be largely handled by Senuran Muthusamy and Prenelan Subrayen, along with Simon Harmer, who last featured for the Proteas in 2023.

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