South Africa's pace spearhead has been ruled out of Friday's first Test against Australia at Kingsmead with a hamstring injury, with Anrich Nortje returning to the Test side for the first time since March 2023.
Kagiso Rabada has been ruled out of the first Test between South Africa and Australia in Durban, Cricinfo reported on Thursday 8 October 2026 (byline Firdose Moonda). Captain Temba Bavuma announced the decision at a press conference, a day before the World Test Championship series opens at Kingsmead on Friday 9 October.
| At a glance | Details |
|---|---|
| Injury | Hamstring, sustained during winter training |
| First Test | South Africa v Australia, Kingsmead, Durban, starts Friday 9 October 2026 |
| SA XI pace attack | Marco Jansen and Anrich Nortje, with Wiaan Mulder as the second allrounder |
| Return timeline | Possible for the later Tests but not confirmed; Bavuma would not commit to the second Test (starts 18 October) |
| Series | World Test Championship (2025-27 cycle), part of an eight-Test home summer |
The conservative call
Rabada has not played a match since the IPL at the end of May, and has not played a Test since South Africa's tour of Pakistan last October. He did return to bowling, playing South Africa's intra-squad training match at the weekend and a second training session at Kingsmead on Thursday. South Africa still opted to give him extra time to reach full match readiness ahead of the long home summer.
"We did go the conservative route and give him a couple of extra days to get as close as he can be to 100% fitness," Bavuma said.
A return for the later Tests is possible but not confirmed. Bavuma would not commit to whether Rabada is a certain starter for the second Test, which starts on 18 October. He said that as soon as Rabada gets the green light, they expect him in the starting XI.
Nortje's long road back
South Africa's XI for the first Test: Aiden Markram, Ryan Rickelton, David Bedingham, Temba Bavuma (captain), Tristan Stubbs, Wiaan Mulder, Kyle Verreynne (wicketkeeper), Marco Jansen, Keshav Maharaj, Simon Harmer and Anrich Nortje. Rabada is on the bench alongside Corbin Bosch, Gerald Coetzee, Dane Paterson, Senuran Muthusamy and the uncapped Marques Ackermann.
Nortje plays his first Test for South Africa since March 2023. He has 19 Tests at a bowling average of 26.71, according to Reuters and AAP. He was impressive in the Durban nets, and Bavuma called the selection a calculated one, while flagging workload management given Nortje's history of back stress fractures.
"A guy like Anrich is hard to ignore. He's X-Factor," Bavuma said.
What it means for the series
South Africa have picked two spinners, Maharaj and Harmer, with slower coastal wickets in mind. Mulder was preferred over Bosch as the second allrounder, largely for his batting ability. Lungi Ngidi is also unavailable with his own hamstring injury.
Rabada's absence will be felt against an opponent he has hurt before. He was Australia's tormentor on the infamous 2018 tour of South Africa, taking 23 wickets at 19.26 in that series, which included the mid-pitch clash with Steve Smith after dismissing him (he was initially banned, and the charge was later downgraded). Australia have their own problems: Cameron Green misses the first Test with an abdominal strain, and Josh Inglis fractured a finger and returned to Perth.
Read the full story on Cricinfo. Cricinfo.
Drafts are where leagues are won. BuildXI is a fan game, not affiliated with the IPL or BCCI, where you run your own draft from IPL history: spin eleven real IPL squads from 2008 to 2025, pick one player from each and play fourteen league matches. The target is 14-0.