South Africa host Australia in a high-stakes three-match ODI series kicking off at Kingsmead, Durban, followed by a three-match Test series in October. World Cup Rematch: This series marks Australia’s return to South Africa for a bilateral series, building on their intense rivalry from the 2023 ODI World Cup semi-final. Road to 2027: With the 2027 ODI World Cup hosted in South Africa, both teams are using this series to lay early groundwork and test core combinations. Team News & Key Talking Points South Africa (Proteas) Injury Concerns: The Proteas enter the series missing key pace options—Kagiso Rabada, Lungi Ngidi, and Ottneil Baartman—leaving heavy responsibility on pace bowlers Gerald Coetzee, Marco Jansen, and young sensation Kwena Maphaka. Senior Availability: David Miller remains committed to international duty despite losing his central contract. Aiden Markram misses the series opener, placing captain Temba Bavuma, Quinton de Kock, and Tristan Stubbs at the heart of the batting lineup. Australia Frontline Pace Boost: Australia arrive fortified by the return of frontline pacers Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, and Josh Hazlewood. Power-Packed Lineup: Led by Mitchell Marsh, Australia’s white-ball squad features explosive match-winners including Travis Head, Cameron Green, Josh Inglis, and spin spearhead Adam Zampa. It's a tired joke but since it hasn't been used for a while, here goes: if you want rain in Durban, put stumps at either end of a 22-yard strip. Though training was interrupted earlier in the week with rain, the cricket gods seem to be taking kindly to the season starting and Thursday is forecast to be dry, warm and windy. Expectation is always for pace and bounce in South Africa and this early in summer (spring, really) on fresh pitches. There has never been ODI cricket in Durban in September before, so it's difficult to make any comparisons but the last full match not affected by rain there, in January 2019, was fairly slow-scoring and favoured bowlers with variations at their disposal.