David Miller 'medically cleared' for 2026 T20 World Cup

Most experienced South Africa batter set for sixth T20 World Cup

South Africa batter David Miller has been "medically cleared" to play in the 2026 T20 World Cup after suffering a groin injury during the SA20. He did not play in Paarl Royals' last two matches, both playoffs, and was rested from the ongoing T20I series against West Indies, but will depart with the rest of the squad to India to play in his sixth T20 World Cup.

Miller is the most experienced member of South Africa's squad and a key part of the batting line-up. He is most likely to slot in at No.5, after Quinton d Kock, Aiden Markram, Ryan Rickelton and Dewald Brevis and will play the role of the finisher. Jason Smith and Tristan Stubbs are the other two specialist batters in the South African squad.

Though Miller has not said it, at 36 years old, this could be his last T20 World Cup. He is on a white-ball only contract with Cricket South Africa and may be eyeing the home ODI World Cup in 2027 as a swansong. Miller was crucial in South Africa's previous ODI World Cup campaign, when he scored a century in the semi-final against Australia in Kolkata in 2023. He also took South Africa to the brink of a maiden T20 World Cup trophy in Barbados in 2024 but was caught on the boundary with 16 runs to get in the final over as South Africa lost to India by seven runs. He has long expressed a desire to go one further and injury will not keep him out of this attempt.

South Africa have already had to make two injury-forced replacements to the squad they announced earlier this month. Donovan Ferreira, suffered a broken shoulder in the SA20 while Tony de Zorzi did not recover from a hamstring tear. They were replaced by Stubbs and Rickelton respectively. It is not known who was in the running if Miller had been ruled out but Rubin Hermann, the batter who was added to the squad as cover for the first T20I against West Indies series, would have been the likeliest.

The South Africa squad will leave Johannesburg for Mumbai on Sunday and play a warm-up game against India on Wednesday. Their first match of the T20 World Cup is against Canada on February 9, followed by fixtures against Afghanistan (February 11 in Ahmedabad), New Zealand (February 14 in Ahmedabad), and UAE (February 18 in Delhi).