South Africa Add Mumbai Indians Star As Reserve Player to Champions Trophy 2025 Squad Ahead of Semi-Final vs New Zealand

South Africa have brought George Linde as a reserve player for the remainder of the Champions Trophy 2025. The move must be keeping an injury to Aiden Markram, who suffered a hamstring niggle in the last game.

Further, Temba Bavuma and Tony de Zorzi also missed the previous encounter due to illness. So, South Africa have several fitness concerns, and it’s wise to have a backup ready if a replacement is required.

Linde has been playing in CSA’s One-Day Challenge competition and is match-ready to be included in the XI anytime. However, he hasn’t been part of the ODI setup for a while, and his last outing for South Africa in this version came against Sri Lanka in 2021, which can be a concern for the team management.

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• ‘Want To Be the Best in the World’ – Heinrich Klaasen Declares Intention After 5th Successive ODI Fifty Sends South Africa to Semi-Final of Champions Trophy 2025

He mostly plays T20Is for the Proteas and is a T20 specialist but boasts a decent List A record after playing the format for more than ten years domestically. Linde has 117 wickets at an average of 30.42 in 87 innings with the ball, including three four-wicket and two five-wicket hauls.

What does George Linde offer to South Africa in ODIs?

While George Linde might have played only two ODIs, he is a quality operator with vast experience. He is among the most accurate white-ball bowlers, targeting the stumps and cramping batters for room.

He bowls those immaculate lines and lengths to control the flow of runs, meaning he can be mighty effective in the middle overs when the ball gets slightly old. South Africa already have Keshav Maharaj, and Linde’s addition will bolster their spin attack further.

He is also a more than decent batter whose power-hitting has improved massively, as visible in this SA20 2025 edition. Linde had a wonderful strike rate of 160.37 and a balls-per-boundary ratio of 4.41 vs pace in the competition.

Hence, he also brings ample batting value and can be used as a power-hitter in the lower order. He will thrive on the flat surface of Pakistan and can provide impetus to the innings in death overs, for he is a better batter than Keshav Maharaj.

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