Proteas Women captain excited about youngsters in the team

She specifically picked out teenager Karabo Meso and 20-year-old Miané Smit for praise, saying they’ve taken to international cricket like ducks to water. The two were also part of the squad in India for the ICC Women’s World Cup, although Smit was the travelling reserve.

She says they’ve taken the opportunities handed to them with both hands.

"They were excellent. Karabo has been so good, her hands are great behind the stumps, and I'm so pleased that she got a few games and she's had a bit of a bat as well, which will help her in the future.

Miane has been good as well, she has grabbed every opportunity."

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Meso turned 18 just before that World Cup, but is starting to establish herself as a full member of the team.

She has been an understudy to veteran wicket-keeper Sinalo Jafta with the gloves, and Wolvaardt says she plays with the confidence that belies her age.

The skipper says the recent white ball series against Ireland allowed them to experiment a bit with their squad and give opportunities to more players, but also admitted that they still had to strike the right balance in order to make sure they don’t underestimate their opponents.

Reflecting on her own personal game this year, Wolvaardt conceded that it’s been a year of two halves.

While she looks in complete control of her batting now and scoring 100s for fun, it wasn’t always the case earlier in 2025 where she struggled to find form.

"It feels good at the moment. I'm just hitting the balls where they need to go without searching too much. At the start of there year, I was probably overthinking a little bit too much."