Tristan Stubbs earns Proteas call-up for India T20I series
Gbets Warriors batsman Tristan Stubbs will be keen to show what he is made of after earning a maiden Proteas callup for the five-match T20I series in India in June.
The explosive middle-order batsman, who is on the roster of five-time Indian Premier League champions Mumbai Indians, is one of three Warriors players to be named in the squad.
Temba Bavuma’s men make a return to international cricket for the first time since the ICC T20 World Cup late last year and will be raring to go in the highly anticipated contest.
Stubbs, who only made his T20 debut for the Warriors two seasons ago, has seen a considerable rise in his stocks in the last 24 months.
The 21-year-old right-hand batsman, who impressed this past season while playing for the Warriors in the CSA T20 Challenge, scored 293 runs in seven innings, at an average of 48.83 and a strike rate of 183.12, including 23 sixes.
He was also part of the SA A team who triumphed in a 4-1 T20 series victory over Zimbabwe before he was called up to the Mumbai Indians camp.
Stubbs’s fellow Warriors teammate Anrich Nortje, who has been recovering from injury since December last year, and batters Reeza Hendricks and Heinrich Klaasen all make their return to the Proteas squad.
Nortje was medically cleared for action and is working through his return-toplay programme while playing for the Delhi Capitals in the IPL.
Wayne Parnell also makes a welcome return to the T20 setup for the first time since the team’s tour to England in 2017.
Apart from Keshav Maharaj and world-leading T20I bowler, Tabraiz Shamsi, the rest of the team will be made up of the IPL contingent, namely, Quinton de Kock, Aiden Markram, David Miller, Lungi Ngidi, Dwaine Pretorius, Kagiso Rabada, Rassie van der Dussen, and Marco Jansen.
“This is the Proteas like we have not seen them in a long time,” CSA convener of selectors Victor Mpitsang said.
“Tristan Stubbs is an exciting prospect and we’re keen to see what he’s made of and we are looking forward to the return of the experience of Reeza, Klaasie (Heinrich Klaasen) and Wayne Parnell to join the likes of Temba, Tabraiz and Keshav.”
Proteas T20 team vs India:
Temba Bavuma (captain) Quinton de Kock, Reeza Hendricks, Heinrich Klaasen, Keshav Maharaj, Aiden Markram, David Miller, Lungi Ngidi, Anrich Nortjé, Wayne Parnell, Dwaine Pretorius, Kagiso Rabada, Tabraiz Shamsi, Tristan Stubbs, Rassie van der Dussen, Marco Jansen.