DURBAN: The South Africa Under-19 Women have enjoyed a perfect start to the ongoing Youth T20 Tri-Series against Zimbabwe Under-19 Women and the Cricket South Africa (CSA) Youth XI, currently taking place in Durban.
Among the next wave of future stars preparing for next year’s ICC U19 Women’s T20 World Cup in Bangladesh and Nepal is 13-year-old KwaZulu-Natal Coastal batter Nobubelebesisa Zwane.
Competing alongside and against players aged between 16 and 20, the youngster earned her maiden SA U19 call-up following impressive performances at the recent CSA Under-13 Girls Week, held in Johannesburg last month.
Zwane registered 206 runs in five T20 matches, including back-to-back half-centuries as captain of the KwaZulu-Natal Under-13 side, finishing the tournament as the leading run-scorer. During the Tri-Series in Durban, the right-hander was selected for the opening match against Zimbabwe and came to the crease late in the innings, scoring an unbeaten seven.
Despite her young age, Zwane recalls her early introduction to the game. Born on 16 April 2012, she grew up in a family of six in Richards Bay, where her cricket journey began.
“I started playing cricket when I was seven, but then it became a priority when I was 11, when I made my first KZN team. I also think I continued cricket because people saw potential in me. I didn’t at first, but when I continued, it was going well,” Zwane commented.
Known as “Nobe” among friends and family, Zwane is a former pupil of Grantleigh Primary School, where she represented the school in cricket, netball, hockey, football and swimming. She earned district and provincial honours in all these sports except swimming, in which she competes in galas at club level. Zwane credits both her family and her school environment for supporting her development as both an athlete and a student.
“I would say my mother and sister because they helped a lot in every single thing I do, like other sports, school, etc. I really appreciate them. Since I go to school at Grantleigh, I think it has been quite helpful with my education and my sports,” she added.
While Proteas Women captain Laura Wolvaardt is her favourite cricketer of all time, admired for her batting ability and leadership, Zwane also looks up to SA U19 teammates Ashleigh van Wyk and Karabo Meso, hoping to learn from their experience and temperament.
Reflecting on her first experience touring with the junior national side and her aspirations moving forward, Zwane highlighted the importance of humility and continuous learning.
“I just look forward to meeting professional cricket players and just learning a lot from them and hearing about their experiences and about how they went through with it all. During my first tour with the under-19s, I’ve learnt that the only way to be a great cricketer is to be humble and disciplined.
“So, my goals for 2026 are to train harder, gym more, and speak up more when spoken to,” she concluded.
SA U19 Women Squad
Ashley Barnard (Mpumalanga), Chris-Mari Bezuidenhout (Mpumalanga), Jae-Leigh Filander (Western Province), Miya Lalor (Western Province), Karabo Meso (Central Gauteng Lions), Anelisa Mhlongo (KZN Coastal), Ziya Mohanlall (KZN Coastal), Shelfa Mukhari (Limpopo), Shreeya Subbiah (KZN Coastal), Melissa van der Merwe (Boland), Mieke van Voorst (Eastern Storm), Ashleigh van Wyk (Eastern Storm), Cayleigh Wanckel (Eastern Province), Nobubelebesisa Zwane (KZN Coastal)
SA U19 Women’s Youth T20 Tri-Series against Zimbabwe U19 Women and CSA Youth XI
1st T20 – SA U19 won by 31 runs
SA U19: 135/4 after 20 overs; M. van Voorst 35, K. Meso 29; B. Maposa 1/32, S. Maseka 1/30
Zimbabwe U19: 104/8 after 20 overs; R. Mpofu 15, L. Pemhiwa 14; M. Lalor 2/13, Z. Mohanlall 2/18
2nd T20 – SA U19 won by 11 runs
SA U19: 78/6 after 10 overs; K. Meso 36, M. van Voorst 23; N. Nini 4/15, J. Campher 1/7
CSA Youth XI: 67/3 after 10 overs; J. Botha 24, C. Venter 18; C. Wanckel 1/17, S. Mukhari 1/3
3rd T20 – SA U19 won by 20 runs
SA U19: 152/5 after 20 overs; M. van Voorst 56, M. Lalor 45; N. Nini 2/31, B. Goosen 1/33
CSA Youth XI: 132/7 after 20 overs; C. Venter 45, D. van Rensburg 24; C. Wanckel 1/22, M. Lalor 1/23
4th T20 – CSA Youth XI won by 18 runs
CSA Youth XI: 134/7 after 20 overs; J. Campher 37, G. Sequira 22, T. Garutsa 2/14, C. Mutasa 1/24
Zimbabwe U19: 116/8 after 20 overs; M. Zinyama 41, N. Makanhiwa 24; J. Camphor 3/15, P. Sekhuthe 2/18
Thursday, 15 January – 5th Youth T20 at 13h00 – SA U19 Women vs Zimbabwe U19 (Chatsworth Oval, Durban)
Friday, 16 January – 6th Youth T20 at 13h00 – CSA Youth XI vs Zimbabwe U19 (Chatsworth Oval, Durban)
Sunday, 18 January – Youth T20 Tri-Series Final at 13h00 – TBC (Chatsworth Oval, Durban)
Source: cricket.co.za
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