South African appoints Laura Wolvaardt as women’s team interim captain

As Sune Luus stepped down as the captain of the South African women’s team last week, Cricket South Africa have appointed Laura Wolvaardt for the role. The vice-captain Chloe Tryon’s unavailability also played a key role in CSA naming Wolvaardt the interim captain.

Wolvaardt has featured in 80 ODIs and 53 T20Is for the South African side. Apart from her international experience, she has also featured in franchise tournaments like IPL and the BBL. The South African batter has an experience of captaining the national side in two ODIs so far. The 24-year-old is appointed as leader of the team for a duration of two months which includes white-ball series against Pakistan and New Zealand. Her performance will be reviewed after the series and CSA will take a call on her future as captain. 

Wolvaardt shared her joy after being appointed as the skipper of the national team, 

"It's a massive honor to be offered this position as captain for the next two tours. It's something that I have always aspired to do, having played in this team for a couple of years. Having more of a leadership role is something I've wanted to take on. It'll help me as a cricketer and learning to think as a captain on the field will hopefully help my batting as well,” Wolvaardt stated in an official release by CSA. 

"I'm very excited to be able to contribute in another way too, and not just in batting. It still feels surreal at the moment but it will all become more real when I meet up with the team in Pakistan.

CSA director, Enoch Nkwe cited the reason behind the appointment of Wolvaardt as a captain of the South African side. 

"Laura's dedication, leadership acumen, and cricketing prowess have been evident throughout her career. Her ability to stay composed under pressure and her deep understanding of the game make her an ideal candidate to lead the team,” Nkwe explained. 

"Laura's influence as captain will extend beyond her individual performances as she guides the team toward their goals."

South Africa women would be playing against Pakistan from september 1 for three T20Is and as many ODIs. Post that, the team will take on New Zealand for eight white-ball games.