Dale Steyn and AB de Villiers are among the Proteas that Australia will need to be wary of in their three game T20 series in South Africa
Five South Africans to watch in T20 series
Before Australia launch their World T20 campaign in India next month, they first have to deal with South Africa in a three-match T20 international series in the space of six days.
The series is set to be the final hit out for both sides as they prepare to win the shortest format's showpiece event for the first time.
While Steve Smith, Darren Lehmann and the Australians will be focusing heavily on the makeup and design of their own team, here are five players they will need to pay close attention to in the upcoming T20I series that starts on Friday in Durban.
5. Dale Steyn
Image Id: ~/media/BEC403D76574493997CC9C405D1583AEThe leading fast bowler of the past decade, Dale Steyn is frightening with the new ball and frugal with the old. His T20 international record is first-rate; 55 wickets in 38 matches, striking every 15 balls and conceding fewer than 6.5 runs per over.
It's been almost two years since Steyn last played T20 cricket for the Proteas and coming back from a shoulder injury, it's not entirely clear what Steyn we'll see.
Quick Single: Steyn takes 5-13 in return from injury
But there's no doubting the champion has what it takes to bounce back with immediate effect, and if South Africa are to push Australia in this series, and the rest of the world in India next month, the pace ace will need to be at his devastating best.
Best T20I performance: In only his second match, Steyn claimed the remarkable figures of 4-9 from three overs against the West Indies at St George' s Park in 2007. All four victims, in typical Steyn fashion, were bowled, with three belonging to searing yorkers and the other a clever change of pace.
4. Kagiso Rabada
Image Id: ~/media/DB661E87193B455FA25F31CE2EABEB43South Africa's new pace sensation, Kagiso Rabada has made a stunning start to his international career.
His first match for the Proteas was actually against this week's foes in November 2014. Rabada opened the bowling against Aaron Finch's men at the Adelaide Oval, and while he went wicketless, the young speedster was better than his 0-27 from three overs.
Flash forward 16 months, and we now see a fitter, stronger, and faster Rabada steaming in and causing batsmen headaches. He was inspirational against England in all formats this summer, and snared three scalps (opener Jason Roy twice) taking the new ball in South Africa's 2-0 T20I series win.
Best T20I performance: In August 2015, Rabada captured the scalps of Kane Williamson, Jimmy Neesham and Colin Munro to be the Proteas best bowler against a rampant Black Caps outfit in Centurion to finish with 3-30 from four overs.
3. Faf du Plessis
Image Id: ~/media/24131E95B0544C7891D5A3321D5D0C1CThe Proteas T20 skipper, Faf du Plessis has an imposing record in the game's shortest format at its premier level.
Averaging a tick under 40 (considered fantastic in T20 cricket), Du Plessis has a 360 degree game few can equal and even fewer can surpass. His ability to rotate the strike keeps the scoreboard ticking over while pouncing on the loose delivery and banishing it to the boundary.
He's been a stalwart at first-drop for South Africa since making his debut in 2012, and owns the fifth-highest score in the format batting at No.3 – 119 against the Windies.
Du Plessis is part of power-packed triumvirate at the top of the order, coming in after Hashim Amla and AB de Villiers, though that might change with the return of wicketkeeper-batsman Quinton de Kock.
Best T20I performance: The aforementioned 119 was a brutal knock 13 months ago. His first fifty came from 23 balls, his second a mirror image. The Wanderers was treated to a T20 clinic as De Plessis smacked 11 fours and five sixes in his 56-ball knock. Out in the penultimate over, the skipper helped his side post a mammoth 7-231 from 20 overs. Incredibly, it wasn't enough.
2. David Miller
Image Id: ~/media/D31ED6584E27436CB51C838681D96FC8While he's yet to hit his straps at international level, Miller is a match-winner in T20 cricket. At 26, he's already racked up 182 matches, playing all over the world, from England to India, Bangladesh and on home soil.
A powerfully built left-hander, Miller has a close connection with Australian allrounder Glenn Maxwell – the pair both play for India Premier League team Kings XI Punjab, which the South African captains.
A journeyman of the batting order, Miller has been most successful at No.4, but is a regular in the lower-middle order. His ability to clear the rope makes him a threat in the latter stages of an innings, and if not dismissed, or at least contained, could spell doom for his opposition.
Best T20I performance: In the same match that Du Plessis walloped the Windies, Miller produced a cameo that was worthy of an Oscar. From only 26 balls, Miller thrashed four fours and three sixes in his 47-run innings, striking at 180. It's the exact innings the Proteas want out of Miller, and the type that opposing captains fear.
1. AB de Villiers
Image Id: ~/media/445513C5AB88440F9F89E3723E5B5C12The most complete batsman in the world, AB de Villiers has a bit of a point to prove in T20 internationals. A master of the Test and one-day formats, De Villiers' record in the shortest version hasn’t reached the lofty heights of the other longer forms.
But who dares write him off? He has the fastest ODI century – an incredulous 31-ball feat against the Windies last summer, can clear any part of the boundary rope, and has more shots than anyone in the history of the sport.
And while it's yet to be seen if the wickets for this three-match series will mimic those of the sub-continent, if they do, it could spell danger for the tourists. De Villiers is particularly potent in India on the slow, turning tracks, where last year he blasted 133 from just 59 balls – his hundred coming from only 47 deliveries – for Royal Challengers Bangalore in the IPL.
Best T20I performance: In the 2009 edition of the ICC World T20, Scotland suffered the full wrath of De Villiers. From 34 balls, the second-drop plundered five fours, six sixes and 79 runs.