George Linde will join the South African squad as a traveling reserve for the Champions Trophy, covering for injured Aiden Markram, who hurt his right hamstring during a match against England. Markram’s availability for the semi-final against New Zealand will be determined after a fitness test. South Africa is facing numerous injuries, with other fast bowlers also ruled out. Linde’s addition aims to bolster the squad in case of a final against India, where conditions may require an extra spinner. He previously excelled in the SA20 and One-Day Challenge, while Kwena Maphaka also serves as a traveling reserve.
Markram joins an extensive list of injured players. Anrich Nortje, Gerald Coetzee, Nandre Burger, and Lizaad Williams—all fast bowlers—were declared unfit even before the tournament commenced.
Linde is expected to join the South African camp on Tuesday evening, however, he will only officially replace Markram in the squad if Markram is ruled out and the ICC’s event technical committee approves the change. It appears that South Africa has included him as a precaution in case they advance to a final in Dubai against India, where the drier conditions may necessitate an additional spinner. Currently, the squad includes two specialist spinners: Keshav Maharaj and Tabraiz Shamsi, but only Maharaj has taken the field in Pakistan. India featured four spinners in their last game against New Zealand in Dubai.
In the 2025 SA20, Linde was instrumental in MI Cape Town securing their first title. Over the course of 11 matches, he accumulated 161 runs at a strike rate of 153.33 and took 11 wickets with an economy rate of 6.29. More recently, while representing Western Province in the One-Day Challenge Division One, he scored 106 runs and claimed four wickets across five matches.