Proteas commence preparations for next edition of U19 Women’s T20 World Cup
South Africa are putting everything in place to succeed at the 2027 edition of the U19 Women's T20 World Cup.
South Africa are leaving no stone unturned as they seek to go one better at the next edition of the ICC U19 Women’s T20 World Cup.
The Proteas finished as runners up behind India at this year's U19 Women's T20 World Cup and have already set their sights on winning their first title at the next tournament in Bangladesh and Nepal in 2027.
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The side have identified 50 players that could be in contention for the 2027 event and will host a pair of training camps prior to the tournament that will hone in on skills development and match practice for their players.
The first training camp will be held across four days this month, with 24 players in total - including four promising stars that featured at this year's event - getting the chance to show their skills ahead of the 2027 tournament.
Mieke van Voorst, Ashleigh van Wyk, Diedré van Rensburg, and Chanel Venter were all part of the squad that made it through to the final of the U19 T20 World Cup earlier this year and are still eligible for the 2027 event, while non-traveling reserve Jané Verhage is another player that will feature at the upcoming camp in Tshwane.
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South Africa coach Dinesha Devnarain is looking forward to assembling the best talent at the Cricket South Africa Centre of Excellence between March 20-23 and is hoping to boost the fitness of the side during the four-day camp.
“The first day of camp is just dedicated to fitness. It's something that I want to be better at with this World Cup squad. I want us to set a goal for ourselves to be the fittest team there. And that's a control level," Devnarain said.
“We'll put them through two matches. There'll be some skill sessions as well, but just to put them in a live net, see what they're about, see how they operate, how they go about their business, who creates conversation and what type of conversations there are.
“We are really looking forward to working with the new crop of players. We do have some returning players so that will be exciting to see where’s the level at and where are the gaps that we need to cover."
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Devnarain is excited to have some key members of the 2025 squad at the camp and is hoping to see the younger brigade push their more experienced teammates to even greater heights.
"It'll sort of be the same message that we said from the 2023 group to the 2025 group, nothing is guaranteed," she added.
“At the end of the day, you’ve still got to meet the demands of international cricket and the brand of cricket that we want to play in South Africa. We also want to match up the girls that have been to World Cups before with the girls that haven’t. We want to match up those skills and see what areas we might have to fill as well as just from a mental aspect and creating a culture.
“Really looking forward to heading into the 2027 preparations and to start with 50 girls that did relatively well for their provinces at the national week is an excellent way to start."
South Africa training camp squad: Daneli Boshoff, Nonhlanhla Danisa, Magdaleen Ernst, Tiche Frans, Jessica Joshua, Miya Lalor, Siphokuhle Masilela, Kananelo Mokoena, Boitumelo Motsabi, Taymin Muggels, Shelfa Mukhuri, Rethabile Nthoba, Lebogang Rakoeane, Erin Scrooby, Gabriella Sequira, Shreeya Subbiah, Melissa van der Merwe, Maria Elizabeth van der Vyfer, Diedré van Rensburg, Imaan van Schalkwyk, Mieke van Voorst, Ashleigh van Wyk, Chanel Venter, Jané Verhage