South Africa has received a major blow before their 2026 T20 World Cup because both Tony de Zorzi and Donovan Ferreira have been declared unfit to participate in the prestigious event which takes place in India and Sri Lanka. 

De Zorzi has not achieved rehabilitation success according to expected recovery milestones since he suffered a right hamstring muscle tear which occurred during the ODI series against India last month. The left-hander needs more rehabilitation according to medical staff because he will not reach full health before the upcoming T20I series. De Zorzi has withdrawn from the World Cup squad.

Ferreira experienced a left clavicle fracture during a domestic T20 match which took place in South Africa earlier this month. His injury demands extended recovery because it will prevent him from participating in international competitions until further notice while it also nullifies his chance to compete at the World Cup.

Rickelton and Stubbs recalled and Miller fitness concern looms ahead of World Cup

The Proteas have responded by calling up Ryan Rickelton and Tristan Stubbs as replacements. South Africa has gained batting strength through the return of both batters who were missing from the initial squad after South Africa announced their first team.

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David Miller who has experience as a campaigner has developed fitness problems because he has an adductor muscle injury. Miller has been ruled out of the three-match home T20I series against the West Indies but remains in contention for the World Cup, subject to passing a fitness test closer to the tournament.

In the meantime, in-form Rubin Hermann has been drafted into the squad for the West Indies series after impressing in the ongoing SA20 league. South Africa will begin their T20 World Cup campaign against Canada on February 9 in Ahmedabad after they were placed in Group D.

Updated South Africa T20 World Cup Squad

Aiden Markram (captain), Corbin Bosch, Dewald Brevis, Quinton de Kock, Marco Jansen, George Linde, Keshav Maharaj, Kwena Maphaka, David Miller* , Lungi Ngidi, Anrich Nortje, Kagiso Rabada, Ryan Rickelton, Jason Smith, Tristan Stubbs

*Subject to fitness test

The captain of the Johannesburg Super Kings (JSK) from the 2025/26 season of the SA20, Faf du Plessis, recalls the former World Cup captain, MS Dhoni, and the latter’s run-out from behind the wickets during the T20 World Cup 2016 against Bangladesh when he rushed to the stumps after the batter missed the short ball from Hardik Pandya.

During the 2025/26 season of the SA20, Donovan Ferreira ran Eathan Bosch off the final delivery of regulation to ensure that the scores would remain the same. Du Plessis, who anticipated a catch-out dismissal, didn’t hope for a run-out on the final ball.

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“I remember there was a game a long time ago, when MS Dhoni was standing behind the stumps for India. I think it was against Bangladesh in a World Cup, and I remember the guy bowling almost like a cut ball across him. So, I just told him (Mulder), just go short, across him, and hopefully we get a wicket. I wasn’t banking on a run out. So, we are bowling for run outs now.” Du Plessis expressed in the post-match presentation.

Faf du Plessis remembers MS Dhoni’s run-out from T20 World Cup 2016

Johannesburg posted 205/4 in their allotted 20 overs of the first innings as Shubham Ranjane nailed an unbeaten knock of 50 runs in 31 balls at a strike rate of 161.29 with the help of four boundaries and a couple of sixes. Donovan Ferreira clubbed an undefeated 33 runs in just 10 balls, thanks to four sixes and one boundary.

Watch the video here: 

The most relevant cricketer! @msdhoni https://t.co/tA7SYZSyj6 pic.twitter.com/tNjYGygupu

— ` (@WorshipDhoni) January 2, 2026

“We're doing some good things. And I think the nice thing is we feel like we're still getting to play better as a team. We're doing things slowly, better. We're certainly not the finished article. So, tonight it's nice to squeak your bum over the line and get two points.” The former South Africa captain addressed.

Durban was restricted to 205/8 with Evan Jones playing a fantastic knock of 43 runs in just 17 balls at a strike rate of 252.94, scoring four boundaries and three sixes. However, JSK completed a successful win in the super-over.

Brief Scores: JSK 205/4 (Shubham Ranjane 50*, Faf du Plessis 47, Noor Ahmed 3/12) beat DSG 205/8 (Evan Jones 43, Aiden Markram 37, Richard Gleeson 3/41) in the super-over.

The mystery spinner of the Indian cricket team, Varun Chakravarthy, has been excellent with the ball during the first couple of T20Is of the five-match series against South Africa at home. He leaked only six runs in the first two overs at an economy rate of three, which built the pressure on the batters. 

On the third ball of the 14th over of the first innings, Donovan Ferreira went for a massive slog sweep to the full-length delivery as the batter backed himself to nail this over the mid-wicket region. He swung his willow and left nothing in the tank, but ended up missing the ball completely to lose the leg stump, and got dismissed for 20 runs in 15 balls.

See Also: Watch: Arshdeep Singh dismisses Reeza Hendricks in very first over during IND vs SA 3rd T20I in Dharamshala

On the opening ball of the 16th over, Marco Jansen tried to defend the fullish delivery as he didn’t have a clue to the spin on that one and thought it would go away, but it came in to sneak through the gate. Jansen returned to the pavilion for two runs as the Proteas were restricted to 77/7.

Varun Chakravarthy dismisses Marco Jansen and Donovan Ferreira

It was the third time Jansen was dismissed by Chakravarthy in the shortest format in five innings, making 18 runs in nine deliveries. The Tamil Nadu spinner found this place at the fourth place in the list of 50 wickets in T20Is with the fewest deliveries among the full member nations. He bowled 672 balls for the mark, as Ajantha Mendis had 600 balls.

Watch the video here: 

#IndvsSA pic.twitter.com/oBS4dycniR

— Cricket Everywhere✍🏻 (@Subhamk79241601) December 14, 2025

For India, Varun became the second fastest for 50 T20I wickets in 32 matches, while the left-arm wrist spinner, Kuldeep Yadav, got to the record in 30 matches. South Africa never got going with the bat in the game and kept losing wickets.

The Proteas finished the first innings for 117 runs, getting bundled out in 20 overs. Chakravarthy finished with 2/11 while Kuldeep ended with 2/12 in two overs. Everyone, getting a ball in the innings, was awarded at least one wicket, which was a pleasing all-round performance.

The 23rd game of The Hundred 2025 was played at Kennington Oval, where Oval Invincibles defeated Trent Rockets in a lively match. Captain Sam Billings won the toss for Oval and chose to bowl first. Both teams made one change – Saqib Mahmood came in for Jordan Clark, while Ben Sanderson replaced Lockie Ferguson.

Trent Rockets scored 171/7 in their 100 balls. Joe Root was the standout with a superb 76 from 41 balls, hitting 11 fours and a six. Rehan Ahmed made 28, and George Linde finished strongly with 25 off just 8 balls to give the innings late firepower.

In reply, Oval Invincibles chased the target calmly. Jordan Cox smashed 54 from only 24 balls, hitting two fours and six sixes. Tawanda Muyeye scored 20, and Donovan Ferreira hit the winning boundary. Oval finished at 172/4 with 11 balls left to win by six wickets.

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Major League Cricket is getting a lot of attention as the tournament is getting exciting with every passing season. The 2025 season witnessed some entertaining contests. The tournament witnessed some brilliant individual performances from some of the best performers in T20 Cricket from across the globe. In this piece, we discuss three batters who showed their destructive hitting with the bat, which enabled them to register the highest strike rates in the season. 

These batters batted with aggression, hitting some powerful shots, putting pressure on the opposition bowlers. The batters mentioned in the list possess different skill sets and techniques when it comes to their stroke play, but they entertained the crowds in a big way and also accelerated their strike rates, thus playing a key role for their respective sides. We discuss these batters in detail:

1.Finn Allen (San Francisco Unicorns, strike rate- 225.00 in 9 MLC games)

The New Zealander is known for his powerful hitting abilities. Allen hit the ball powerfully down the ground. The 26-year-old cut the ball hard and played some powerful strokes with his back foot and front foot punches. Allen hit 35 sixes in the entire MLC season. that reflects the power the right-hander possesses.

The right-hander registered a strike rate of 225.0 in 9 MlC games this season, scoring 333 runs with a highest score of 151 in 9 matches. Allen pulled the ball and adjusted his stroke play well on different wickets accordingly. He hit some powerful shots on the up.

2.Donovan Ferriera(Texas Super Kings, strike rate-213.9 in10 MLC games)

The South African wasn't afraid of hitting the aerial shots, and his ability to take risks by playing shots during the middle overs highlighted his fearless attitude with the bat. The 26-year-old registered a strike rate of 213.9 in 10 MLC games this season, scoring 248 runs.

The wicket-keeper batter hit some powerful pull shots, and his flat-batted shots enabled him to clear the boundaries easily, thus helping him to accelerate his strike rate. Ferriera faced the spinners with an attacking mindset.

Also Read: MLC 2025 Trophy All Award Winners: Check Out Full List

3.Shimron Hetmyer (Seattle Orcas, strike rate-209.87 in 8 MLC games)

The West Indian cricketer can destroy any bowling lineup on his day, and Hetmyer was at his best when it came to his ability to take apart the opposition bowling lineups in the entire MLC season. The left-hander cracked the powerful shots with his strong bottom hand. The 28-year-old registered a strike rate of 209.87 in 8 MLC games this season, scoring 347 runs with 3 half-centuries to his name.

Hetmyer played some powerful drives and smashed the pacers with his trademark shots over deep square leg. The Guyanese cricketer shifts his front leg across, which enables him to hit the pacers by opening his arms.

Texas Super Kings Score Big to Beat Washington Freedom

In Match 23 of the 2025 Major League Cricket, Texas Super Kings defeated Washington Freedom by 43 runs at the Central Broward Regional Park in Lauderhill. Rain delayed the start, so the game was cut down to just 5 overs per side, with a 2-over powerplay.

Washington Freedom won the toss and chose to bowl first. But Texas Super Kings took full advantage of the short game and take advantage to win the game. They scored an impressive 87 runs for 2 wickets in 5 overs. Shubham Ranjane was the star, hitting 39 runs from 14 balls. Donovan Ferreira smashed 37 runs off only 9 balls, while Daryl Mitchell added 6 runs. Washington’s Saurabh Netravalkar took 1 wicket but gave away 30 runs in his 2 overs.

Chasing 88 runs was too much for Washington Freedom. They ended at 44 runs for 4 wickets in their 5 overs. Glenn Phillips tried hard with 18 runs from 11 balls. Rachin Ravindra made 10 runs off 4 balls, and Mitchell Owen scored 7 off 6. Texas Super Kings’ bowlers did a great job.

Nandre Burger took 2 wickets for 12 runs in 1 over. Noor Ahmad picked up 1 wicket for 14 runs, and Akeal Hosein took 1 wicket for 18 runs in his 2 overs. Texas Super Kings played better in all departments and walked away with a clear and important win.

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Twitter reactions after TSK wins 23th match of MLC 2025

TSK after 3 overs - 34/1
TSK after 5 overs - 87/2

😱😱😱

53 runs scored in just 2 overs in this rain-affected five overs per side match in #MLC2025 pic.twitter.com/AqZMMGg0T7

— Cricbuzz (@cricbuzz) July 3, 2025

Rachin Failed and TSK Won 😛👌 What a Day To Be Alive 💛 pic.twitter.com/jqDZ8ZIn8X

— Junaid Khan (@JunaidKhanation) July 3, 2025

TSK WON THE MATCH BY 43 RUNS 💛

DONOVAN FERREIRA SCORED 37*(9) pic.twitter.com/07d8jXSrfl

— Abhinav MSDian™ (@Abhinav_hariom) July 3, 2025

The only way TSK could have won WF & it happened 🥹 pic.twitter.com/NzDfJzkSyY

— Jacob Martin (@Leg_shift_D) July 3, 2025

TSK won against Top 2 team 🥵🥵🥳#MLC2025 #TSKvWF pic.twitter.com/9oyALIDTm1

— Vibhavan (@Vibhavan07) July 3, 2025

TSK winning and qualified MINY not doing good what a day to celebrate pic.twitter.com/LUpHHFxO49

— Roxxstarrr.. (@Weirdo___777___) July 3, 2025

We won the match, but whose strategy was it to send this Motta up the order ahead of Ferreira and Savage in a 5-over match? #TSK #TSKvWF #MLC pic.twitter.com/gYiFTxrUIZ

— Madhan (@mersalmadhan06) July 3, 2025

A cameo at its best. 9 balls, 5 sixes, strike rate above 400; enough to destroy opponent team bowlers and their hope to make a comeback in the match. Donovan Ferreira, Texas Super Kings (TSK) star batter, chose to go berserk against Washington Freedom (WAF) in a 5-over match.

In game 23 of MLC 2025, only 5 overs allotted for the TSK vs. WAF match were filled with high-end entertainment for the crowd from the beginning. Texas Super Kings was in full control from the initial stage of the contest; Ferreira took it to another level. He faced 9 deliveries and delivered an unbeaten 37-run knock, powered by five 6s. In the process, Washington Freedom all-rounder Mitchell Owen proved the most expensive bowler of the night.

In his two overs, Owen leaked 39 runs in total. His teammate, Jack Edwards, produced a 17.00 economy rate in his one over bowling. Donovan Ferreira was well backed by his Super Kings comrade Shubham Ranjane. Ranjane took only 14 balls to bag an unbeaten 39-run innings. With the help of these two batters, the team from Texas put 87/2 on the scoreboard in 5-over limit. Glenn Maxwell led Washington and found nothing to match with their opponent. WAF within the 5-over quota 44 and lost 4 scalps. Maxwell showed pure disappointment after the match.

Read More: ENG vs IND 2nd Test, Day 1: Highlights and key moments

A 106m six to depict the innings 

During the post-match presentation he said, "If we were able to change the team, we probably would have. TSK had two world-class spinners in their XI, while we had two all-rounders."

The hero of the match, Donovan Ferreira, said that it's never nice to take a player off, but luckily for them, it paid off. Closes by saying that the 106m hit looked bigger. 

Watch the 106m six here

DONOVAN FERREIRA MADNESS IN THE FINAL OVER - 6,6,6,2,2,6 🥶 pic.twitter.com/6OvgMAD368

— Johns. (@CricCrazyJohns) July 3, 2025