New Delhi [India]. February 4 (ANI): ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2024's runners-up, South Africa, kick off their quest for an ICC Men's T20 World Cup title with a warm-up game against defending champions India on February 4. Proteas skipper Aiden Markram is ready to lead his side for the straight second time in the multi-nation tournament.

Speaking on JioStar's 'The Experts' View', former England captain Nasser Hussain, former Australian cricketer Mel Jones, and former West Indies pacer Ian Bishop discussed the absence of Heinrich Klaasen for South Africa and the strength of their side heading into the tournament.

Ian Bishop expressed his excitement at seeing the depth and mix of youth and experience in South Africa's squad and mentioned what he had said to Markram after the Proteas lost the dramatic final in Barbados.

Bishop said, 'I'm taking everything into account, the women, men, and the under-19s reaching semi-finals and finals. It's something I mentioned to Aiden Markram at the presentation after the 2024 final, when I said his time would come. I don't know when that will be, or whether you include the World Test Championship as part of that moment, but when you look through their side, you see the talent they have.'

On the availability of experienced players in South Africa T20I squad for 2026, Bishop said, 'We've mentioned Klaasen and what's missing, but Quinton de Kock is still available, and there are players like Dewald Brevis, who can, and probably will, take world cricket by storm. You still have Aiden Markram and other experienced players as well. I don't know exactly where it's coming from, but I continue to be very excited about South African cricket, especially while Kagiso Rabada and the rest of those guys still remain involved across formats.'

Mel Jones also echoed the same and admitted that the ICC World Test Championship Final 2025 win would have been a morale booster for South Africa. She said, 'The happiness, joy, and elation of performing for your nation, and then bottling all those feelings up, is significant. For those who didn't play or weren't part of that World Test Championship victory, I know they would have been watching. Everyone in South Africa was watching. That presents a challenge for the coaching staff to ensure they don't keep going back to it, because this is a different tournament and you don't want to alienate players.'

'There is a strong sense of what South Africa represents as a nation and what cricket does for the country, and you can certainly feed off that, but you don't want it to become the be-all and end-all. I watched them in Australia recently, and there's a swagger about South African cricket at the moment, which is quite cool. It reminded me of the West Indies back in the day, when they would turn up and you'd think they were going to beat you, but you still loved watching them. They've brought through a variety of players, with both bat and ball, and they are now the team everyone is looking over their shoulder at. Bowlers would have breathed a sigh of relief when Klaasen said he wasn't involved anymore because that suddenly cuts your bowling meetings in half. Even so, when you look at that squad, something is brewing there,' she concluded. (ANI)