The Return of the Great Dané
South Africa couldn’t have scripted a better start to their home season. A confident 2–0 T20I series win over Ireland, with the final match in Benoni washed out, has the Proteas Women stepping into the ODI leg with a sense of purpose and momentum that feels both fresh and familiar.
This is a team that has just returned from an ODI World Cup final in Navi Mumbai, a team that has stared down the best in the world and proven they belong in that company. And now, on home soil, they begin the next stretch of their journey with renewed hunger, and a returning star whose presence lifts the entire dressing room.
Because the biggest story of this series isn’t the rain in Benoni, or even the two comprehensive wins. It’s the return of Dané van Niekerk. After nearly two years away from international cricket, van Niekerk’s comeback has brought a surge of excitement through South African cricket circles.
The response has been emotional and electric, and once she stepped out in Paarl, it became clear why. Her 41 off 19 balls was a reminder of everything she has always brought to this team: calm authority, attacking clarity, and the ability to commandeer pressure and turn it into opportunity.
It wasn’t just a cameo. It was a re-statement. For a player with more than 2,500 ODI runs, two centuries, nine fifties and 84 wickets in the format, the return is about far more than nostalgia. It’s about adding depth, leadership and tactical sharpness to a side that is beginning to peak in both white-ball formats.
While van Niekerk’s comeback naturally grabs headlines, the T20I series also offered a glimpse of a player stepping fully into her own. Suné Luus, named Player of the Series, looked as composed and confident as we’ve ever seen her. She set the tempo beautifully in both Newlands and Paarl, anchoring the batting effort with the kind of maturity and consistency that has become her trademark, yet with a new sense of freedom in her stroke-play.
Luus has long been a reliable figure for South Africa, but this series felt like confirmation that she is entering her prime, and thriving there. Her form at the top gives the batting unit a level of assurance that allows the middle order, now bolstered by van Niekerk, to play with greater intent.
Faye Tunnicliffe also made an encouraging contribution in the T20Is, scoring a well-judged maiden fifty in Paarl that helped set up South Africa’s second 200-plus total. It was a composed innings that showed her growing confidence at this level and added important stability at the top of the order.
The team’s T20I performance as a whole deserves credit. Posting 220/2 at Newlands and following it up with 201/5 in Paarl showed clear intent and clarity in roles across the XI. The bowlers held their lines, the fielding was sharp, and the batting combinations clicked early in the season, a rare and encouraging sign.
Even with the Benoni washout, South Africa walk into the ODI series, starting on Saturday, 13 December, with rhythm, belief, and an unmistakable sense of upward trajectory.
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The upcoming ODI series brings a different challenge, and Ireland will be determined to show more resilience in the longer format. But South Africa, with a strengthened middle order, a confident top three, and a balanced bowling unit, carry the advantage of depth and experience. The World Cup final appearance has toughened this group.
The return of van Niekerk has enriched it. And Luus’s growth has added even more certainty to a side that already knows how to compete over 50 overs.
All signs point to a compelling series, one where South Africa have both the opportunity and the firepower to assert itself. With Van Niekerk back at the heart of things and Luus stepping into her own light, the Proteas Women look to be on the right track early on in the season.
Main Photo Caption: The Proteas Women enter the ODI series beginning on Saturday with clear momentum after a 2–nil T20I series win over Ireland, bolstered by the electric return of Dané van Niekerk and the superb form of Player of the Series Suné Luus. Photo: Cricket South Africa
Photo 2 Caption: Dané van Niekerk’s return to international cricket after nearly two years away has brought a surge of excitement through South African cricket circles.
Photo 3 Caption: T20I Player of the Series Suné Luus is laying down match-winning performances with legacy-building maturity and consistency.
Photo 4 Caption: Faye Tunnicliffe scored a well-judged maiden fifty in Paarl that helped set up South Africa’s second 200-plus total.
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