POTCHEFSTROOM (South Africa), Nov 23: Fast bowler Monde Zondeki was Saturday included as a non-playing member of the South African squad for the first two of five One-day Internationals against Sri Lanka.
The first match is at the Wanderers in Johannesburg Wednesday.
Zondeki, a 20-year-old from Border, a provincial teammate of Makhaya Ntini, stays with the team to gain experience, according to selection convenor Omar Henry.
He will not play in the first two matches but could get a chance later in the series. He is the only uncapped member of the squad.
There has been political pressure to include more black Africans in the national side. Zondeki’s selection makes him a strong contender for a place in South Africa’s World Cup squad when the tournament is staged in South Africa in February and March.
Only two black Africans, fast bowlers Ntini and Mfuneko Ngam, have played for South Africa since racial divisions in the game ended in 1991.
Squad: Shaun Pollock (captain), Mark Boucher (vice-captain), Nicky Boje, Boeta Dippenaar, Allan Donald, Herschelle Gibbs, Andrew Hall, Jacques Kallis, Lance Klusener, Makhaya Ntini, Justin Ontong, Jonty Rhodes, Graeme Smith, Monde Zondeki.—AFP