The Men in Blue have never beaten the Proteas in a World Cup game.
Currently the number one ODI side, South Africa will hope to maintain status quo while Australia would be seeking a coup when the sides cross sword in the five-match ODI series starting in Durban later this week.
Philander was an important part of the Proteas pace troika, comprising Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel, both of whom have retired from Tests.
South African pace spearhead Dale Steyn will not be playing next year's Indian Premier League (IPL). Steyn has ruled himself out of the lucrative T20 league in order to return to the Proteas side for their England tour - and possibly the ICC Champions Trophy. "June is realistic for South Africa," Steyn, who is currently recovering from an elbow injury was quoted as saying by Sport24. "I haven't had a long break like this in a good few years and every season I go into it with something wrong, whether it be a little hammie or whatever."
Batting ace Sachin Tendulkar has injury concerns just a day before India names its team for the World Cup in Chennai on Monday. The batting ace was ruled out of the remainder of the ODI series against South Africa after injuring his right hamstring during his 24-run innings, off 44 balls, in the second ODI against the Proteas at the Wanderers on Saturday, which India won by one run to level the series 1-1.
Former Protea batsman Herschelle Gibbs feels that the Indians should get out of the mental block of their past failure against short-pitched deliveries by being positive in their approach if they have to tackle the South African pace battery in the Test series beginning in Johannesburg on December 18.
Australia meet South Africa in a one-off T20 match on the Gold Coast on November 17, before three T20s against India starting in Brisbane on November 21.
South Africa woefully struggled to get their act right in the matches gone by.
Kohli's decision didn't work as the spin duo failed to contain Proteas
Swing bowler Vernon Philander sent a strong message to the South African one-day international selectors about his prowess in the 50-over game with a superb performance as the Proteas defeated Pakistan by four wickets in the final match of the series in Centurion on Saturday.
Critical of the way Mahendra Singh Dhoni rotated Indian bowlers during the crushing loss to South Africa in the ODI series-decider, former skipper Sunil Gavaskar said the captain was just not flexible enough in his approach.
Australia were on Friday dethroned as the number one team in one-dayers by South Africa who demolished the hosts by 39 runs in the fifth and final match to clinch the ODI series with an emphatic 4-1 margin.
Fourth-ranked South Africa will aim to climb up to second position in the International Cricket Council One day International Team Rankings when they host world champions Australia in the five-match series from September 30.
He missed the ODI series against Sri Lanka earlier this year, with Aiden Markram taking his place as an opener alongside vice-captain Quinton de Kock in the series.
Cricket Australia still in the dark over Australia vs India day-night Test
South African pace bowling great Shaun Pollock criticised India's misplaced priorities and approach to the Test series against the Proteas, saying the team's lack of preparation stood out despite a historic ODI triumph.
For Africa's Test-playing nations, administrative turmoil has defined the dying days of the 2010s.
AB de Villiers could do anything and everything. If he defied gravity on field, with a bat in hand the laws of physics bent to his wishes.
India vice-captain Virat Kohli dismissed South Africa pacer Dale Steyn's notion that he and his team-mates were 'frightened' of the Proteas' attack, saying they were good enough to tackle the host pace battery.
The South African Cricket team that is locked in the on-going ODI series against India, was quick to put out statements to give tribute to South Africa's favourite son Nelson Mandela.
A disappointed Michael Clarke arrived home from United Arab Emirates on Wednesday eager to shake off Australia's Test series loss to Pakistan and begin his side's World Cup buildup in a one-day series against South Africa.
Realising that just two Tests in the next 11 months endanger India's stay at the top of ICC rankings, the BCCI has requested South Africa to play a couple of five-day games when they visit the country early next year.
South Africa are chasing their first World Cup trophy and, despite being ranked third in the world, captain Faf Du Plessis insists they will play without fear.
De Kock will captain the team in the absence of Faf du Plessis, who will be in India for the Test series.
Pakistan's wily spinners gave a masterclass in slow bowling to bamboozle South Africa's batting line-up and lead their side to a 66-run victory in the second one-day international in the United Arab Emirates on Friday.
Former South African skipper Graeme Smith, who appeared in the recently-concluded Masters Champions League ( MCL) in Dubai, has ruled out the possibility of his comeback to the international cricket. Earlier, the 35-year-old, who retired from all formats of the game in 2014, had hinted that he was considering a comeback into the national side. But, the former opening batsman recently quashed such speculations, saying that playing for South Africa was not on the cards, Sport24 reported. Smith, who recently turned down the job of South Africa's batting consultant, had represented his country in 117 Tests, 197 ODIs and 33 T20Is in his glorious international career.
The Proteas' performance in the recent series against Pakistan in Dubai augured well for the 2015 World Cup but their real test will be the upcoming home series against India, according to former captain Kepler Wessels.
New Zealand will host their first day-night Test when England tour the country in early 2018, pending final approval from both teams.
Former India cricketers Robin Singh and Sriram Sridharan will be coaching Bloem City Blazers and Johannesburg Giants respectively in the upcoming T20 Global League to be held in South Africa.
The BCCI's Tours and Fixtures Committee named Delhi, Ahmedabad, Bangalore and Nagpur as the four Test match venues for the series against South Africa scheduled to be played through October and November.
Former South Africa pacer Henry Williams has revealed that he and Herschelle Gibbs gave false testimonies to the Kings Commission against Hansie Cronje in the match-fixing saga over a decade ago, to make a stronger case against the late Proteas captain.
Australian batting sensation David Warner is all set to make his one-day debut in the second ODI against South Africa at Hobart on Sunday after being picked to replace Micheal Clarke, who was ruled out of the remainder of the five-match series due to a thumb injury. Warner, who smashed a blistering 89 off just 43 balls in the opening Twenty20 international against the Proteas at the MCG earlier this month, will get his chance to stake a claim after missing the first ODI.
Miller is happy with the way De Kock is progressing as a leader and wants to lend all the support that he needs at the start of his new journey.
Young Ishan Kishan blasted a blistering 24-ball 55 as India 'A' beat South Africa 'A' by two wickets in the rain-hit second unofficial ODI to take a 2-0 lead in the five-match series.
The International Cricket Council decided to convert the 2021 ICC Champions Trophy scheduled in India into a World T20 event, finally scrapping the eight-team ODI tournament, the context and relevance of which has been questioned repeatedly.
South African swashbuckler A B de Villiers found a positive for India in what has been a thoroughly disappointing Test campaign in South Africa so far - their 'lively pace attack' which he says, has surprised the hosts.
AB de Villiers and Faf du Plessis struck sublime centuries as South Africa chased down a massive score to beat Australia by seven wickets in the second One-Day International of the triangular series on Wednesday.
South Africa One-day captain AB de Villiers swatted aside suggestions that India off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin could prove his nemesis.
South African leg-spinner Imran Tahir, who is sitting at the top of the rankings for bowlers in both ODIs and T20s, says he never thought he would be No 1 bowler.
Former South African wicketkeeper Mark Boucher wants Ryan McLaren to replace Jacques Kallis as an allrounder in the South African Test team.
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