The three games in the Spar Challenge series will be held at Ellis Park on Thursday, Saturday and Sunday.
The three-match Test series against England starting at Ellis Park on Thursday will play a key role in the national netball team’s preparation for the Commonwealth Games later this year, according to Proteas coach Jenny van Dyk.
The SA side, ranked fifth in the world, will face their toughest opposition (England are ranked fourth) since Van Dyk was appointed as the head coach last year.
She felt this series would be crucial in helping the national side in their attempt to end a lengthy drought by securing their first Commonwealth Games medal since 1994 when they turned out at the mult-sport spectacle in Glasgow in July.
Drawn in the same group as England, a win against the Roses might be critical for the Proteas to progress to the play-offs at the Games, and they had a chance to test themselves against the former Commonwealth champions.
“I think with eyes on the Commonwealth Games, this is great preparation for us as a country to see what type of combinations work best against the combinations that they put out there,” Van Dyk said.
Proteas ‘ready to perform’
After securing a rare victory over England at the Netball Nations Cup in Nottingham last year, where they earned a 61-59 win in the round-robin stage (before falling to the hosts in the final), Proteas captain Khanyisa Chawane was confident the national team could triumph over the higher-ranked Roses again.
With a new-look squad, and playing on home soil, Chawane believed the hosts would put up a strong fight.
“I’m extremely excited, especially because the team that’s going to face them now is not the same,” the skipper said.
“We’ve got new people who have new things to give, so we’re getting into this series unpredictable and that’s what I love about this team.
“Every person who is in this squad is ready to perform for us going into this series. With England we never really want to step back, and we are going to go in hard. We want to win this series and that’s what we’re looking forward to.”
After Thursday’s game, starting at 6pm, the series will conclude with matches (also to be played at Ellis Park) on Saturday and Sunday.
