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Proteas look forward to Starc challenge

South Africa depart for Caribbean tri-series with coach Russell Domingo full of confidence his side can handle returning Aussie speedster

South Africa coach Russell Domingo says his side hold no fears about facing Mitchell Starc in the Caribbean and backed rested champion Dale Steyn to return to top form.

Domingo said he expected Starc to be below his best in the one-day tri-series, also featuring the West Indies, after a lengthy lay-off to recuperate from ankle surgery.

"We've played him before, we know he's a quality bowler, a great reverse swing exponent, good with the new ball, good at the back end," Domingo said of Starc as the Proteas squad prepared to depart for the Caribbean.

"But he's also come off quite a lengthy break as well, so it will probably take him a little bit of time to get back into his rhythm and find his pace again.

"But that's why you play, you want to play against the best sides in the world. It's an opportunity to improve our one-day ranking by playing a side ranked above us."

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The Proteas will be without their pace spearhead in Steyn after South Africa opted to rest him from the tri-series after struggles with a series of injuries over the past 12 months.

Instead Steyn, who is currently warming the bench in the Indian Premier League with Sunrisers Hyderabad, will play Twenty20 cricket in the UK with Glamorgan and in the Caribbean Premier League in the lead-up to a Test series against New Zealand.

Steyn's fitness struggles raised concerns in South Africa that, at 32, he might be approaching the end of his career. He'll turn 33 next month.

"Dale Steyn is a champion bowler, he just hasn't played too much recently," Domingo said.

"Often with players like Dale, when you write them off, that's when they become the most dangerous."

Steyn's latest injury, a right shoulder problem, forced him to miss most of the home Test series defeat to England at the start of the year. He played only two games in the World T20, when he appeared to be missing his usual menace and hadn't fully recovered from the injury to his bowling arm.

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South Africa's decision to rest Steyn for the tri-series is part of a plan to keep him fresh for the upcoming Test season, which has been somewhat undermined by the speedster's decision to chase T20 contracts.

The Proteas host New Zealand in August and then tours Australia for three Commonwealth Bank Tests in November. Steyn has 406 Test wickets and is closing in on Shaun Pollock's South African record of 421.

South Africa also has a new fast-bowling star to fall back on. Domingo said there would now be a temptation to play 21-year-old speedster Kagiso Rabada in every game and every series the Proteas play.

"We need to be very careful about that," Domingo said.

The coach also made light of South Africa's poor record in World Cups and said they would not be taking the West Indies lightly despite the Caribbean side's world ranking of eighth in one-day cricket.

"We will never, and have never discounted the West Indies," Domingo said.

"They have three more World Cups than we do, and they got them in one year."

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The West Indies have this year claimed the Under-19 World Cup and their men's and women's teams both won the World T20 crown in India.

"As a youngster we grew up idolising the West Indian side of the 1980s. I played a lot of cricket with Eldine Baptiste and he told us a lot of stories about the West Indian culture and how they used to play their cricket and to experience all of that is very humbling and very exciting for someone like me," Domingo said.

"West Indies have always played the game in a free-spirited way. They've got a bit of swagger, a bit of X-factor and maybe we can learn a few lessons from that.

"Maybe at times we do get too tense and they go about their business in a light-hearted way and perform when it counts."

South Africa won't have Steyn in the Caribbean but will have captain AB de Villiers following some sensational batting performances in the IPL.

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De Villiers is set to join the South Africa squad after Sunday's IPL final and before the Proteas' first game against West Indies in Guyana next Friday.

Domingo said batsman Faf du Plessis was still recovering from finger surgery after an injury picked up in the IPL. 

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