Dane van Niekerk, the former South Africa captain who walked away from international cricket last year, has been named in a 20-strong training group ahead of next month’s Women’s World Cup. It all points to a genuine comeback less than 18 months after she quit following that well-publicised fitness dispute.
First things first: selection is only for a pre-tournament camp in Durban, not the final squad, but it is still the clearest sign yet that the door is wide-open again. Van Niekerk, 32, last played for her country in September 2021. An ankle break then a missed two-kilometre time trial kept her out of two major tournaments and eventually nudged her towards retirement in March 2023.
Back then Cricket South Africa (CSA) applied an uncompromising 9-minute-30-second cutoff for the run. That rule has softened; coaches can now override fitness numbers if they feel the player’s cricketing value justifies it. With the side’s middle order wobbling of late, and an experienced spinner always handy on South Asian pitches, the selectors have gone looking for precisely what Van Niekerk offers.
The player herself confirmed the U-turn on social media. In a candid Instagram note she said she had “decided to revoke my retirement from international cricket” and admitted that “the time away has reminded me just how much I have missed representing my country.” She also apologised to “Cricket South Africa and the cricket family for how I handled my retirement,” promising to meet the “standards of the women’s game.”
Western Province, her provincial side, never doubted she still had it. She piled up 179 runs at 59.66 in five one-day games last summer and finished fourth on the Pro20 run charts. Those numbers, though solid, only tell half the story; observers say her intensity in the field now looks closer to pre-injury levels.
Proteas coach Hilton Moreeng, who has final say on the World Cup 15, kept things measured when asked about her prospects. “Selection comes down to balance, form, and conditions,” he noted on Monday. “Dane’s experience is invaluable but we need to see where she is physically over the next week.”
The broader picture is crowded. Stars such as Laura Wolvaardt, Marizanne Kapp and Chloe Tryon are still busy in England’s Hundred competition and will join later. That leaves 19 players in Durban fighting for roughly a dozen spots. Opener Tazmin Brits, seamer Ayabonga Khaka and left-arm spinner Nonkululeko Mlaba look safe. For fringe names – keeper-batter Faye Tunnicliffe or rookie leggie Seshnie Naidu, for example – every net session now matters.
A single uncapped player has made the camp: 19-year-old all-rounder Luyanda Nzuza, fresh from the Under-19 World Cup and an emerging-squad tour of Bangladesh. Her inclusion underlines CSA’s intent to blend youth with tested campaigners.
The schedule is straightforward. After the camp the final squad heads to Pakistan for three ODIs from 16 to 22 September, then straight on to the global event in the subcontinent. South Africa have fallen at the semi-final stage of the last two 50-over World Cups; the target, quietly but clearly, is to push beyond that ceiling.
Is Van Niekerk the missing piece? Former Proteas batter Mignon du Preez thinks she might be. “If Dane’s fit, she walks into most sides,” du Preez told a local radio panel. “Her cricket brain is right up there and you can’t teach that.”
Nothing is guaranteed, yet momentum appears to be moving her way. For now, at least, South Africa’s most accomplished women’s captain since readmission has a chance to write one more chapter.
Training-camp squad: Anneke Bosch, Tazmin Brits, Nadine de Klerk, Annerie Dercksen, Lara Goodall, Ayanda Hlubi, Sinalo Jafta, Ayabonga Khaka, Masabata Klaas, Suné Luus, Eliz-Mari Marx, Karabo Meso, Nonkululeko Mlaba, Seshnie Naidu, Luyanda Nzuza, Chloe Tryon, Laura Wolvaardt, Marizanne Kapp, Dane van Niekerk, Faye Tunnicliffe. currently in England; will join later.
