Johannesburg, March 11: Left-arm pace all-rounder Marco Jansen, big-hitting batter Tristan Stubbs, left-arm spin all-rounder Bjorn Fortuin, fast bowler Sisanda Magala and wicketkeeper-batter Ryan Rickelton are among the five players to be awarded South Africa men's central contracts for the first time, said Cricket South Africa (CSA) on Saturday. Heinrich Klaasen earned a contract upgrade during the course of the past season and has been retained for the upcoming season, while Wayne Parnell makes his return to the contracted squad, which sees an increase from 16 to 20 players. Aiden Markram Appointed Captain of South Africa T20I Team As Proteas Announce Squad for West Indies Series.

"The number of contracted players has increased from 16 to 20 this season to ensure that we have a wider pool of white-ball specialists and Test players. We look forward to seeing them compete at the highest level in what is an important next 12 months for the limited-overs and Test sides, with the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup taking place later this year as well as the start of the new World Test Championship cycle," said Enoch Nkwe, Director of Cricket.

Janneman Malan, Andile Phehlukwayo and Dwaine Pretorius are the omissions from the contracts list. "We are really excited by the mix of experienced and younger players that have been contracted this season as we continue to build a world-class outfit under the leadership of red and white-ball head coaches Shukri Conrad and Rob Walter," said Pholetsi Moseki, CSA Chief Executive Officer.  Ben Duckett Expresses Desire to Play for England Across All Formats, Says 'I Have Matured As A Cricketer'.

South Africa men's contracts list: Temba Bavuma, Quinton de Kock, Dean Elgar, Bjorn Fortuin, Reeza Hendricks, Heinrich Klaasen, Marco Jansen, Sisanda Magala, Keshav Maharaj, Aiden Markram, David Miller, Lungi Ngidi, Anrich Nortje, Wayne Parnell, Keegan Petersen, Kagiso Rabada, Ryan Rickelton, Tabraiz Shamsi, Tristan Stubbs, Rassie van der Dussen.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Mar 11, 2023 06:52 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).