The Proteas will be targeting a strong and fast start to their T20 International series against India which starts on Friday.The Proteas and World Champions will lock horns in a series of four T20 Internationals, which will also see the return of some senior players.

South Africa have not had the best time of late in white-ball cricket and this will be an opportunity to find their rhythm. Especially considering that game-changers such as Heinrich Klaasen, David Miller, Gerald Coetzee, and Marco Jansen are all back in the mix.

India in turn will only have four World Cup winners in their squad Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Panday, Axar Patel, and Arshdeep Singh, as they are busy preparing for their four-Test series against the Baggy Greens in Australia from the end of November.

The former Knights opening batter, Reeza Hendricks, said there is good energy in the camp ahead of the series.

“We are quite happy with our squad, and there are a lot of fast bowlers just like Gerald Coetzee and Marco Jansen who are back,” said Hendricks.

Reeza Hendricks. Photo: Cricinfo

“We’re obviously looking forward to playing against India, and it’s going to be a challenging series and hopefully we can start well.

“There is a good mix with a couple of new faces and guys that have been around as well. So, I think the mix is really good and it is important for those younger faces to be exposed to cricket at this level.

“I’m sure that if they get the opportunity, they will be quite keen and eager to showcase their skills.”

The 1st T20 International will be played on Friday at Kingsmead in Durban.

Proteas T20I squad against India – Aiden Markram (captain), Ottneil Baartman, Gerald Coetzee, Donovan Ferreira, Reeza Hendricks, Marco Jansen, Heinrich Klaasen, Patrick Kruger, Keshav Maharaj, David Miller, Mihlali Mpongwana, Nqaba Peter, Ryan Rickelton, Andile Simelane, Lutho Sipamla, Tristan Stubbs

OFM Sport/Morgan Piek mvh