Milestone series offer Proteas opportunities to learn - Plummer.

Plummer will coach in her 150th Test match when South Africa play their opening game against world number two New Zealand in Cape Town on Saturday.

Although she does not have the mandate to win the series or the World Cup at the same venue later this year, Plummer says the stakes are still high in this series against the world's top three nations, including Australia (ranked number one) and England (ranked number three).

“We played against Zimbabwe and Scotland in the Diamond Challenge with new players last year. Scotland are ranked eighth, and Zimbabwe is much lower. But now we are playing against the top-ranked countries in the world. 

This tournament is performance-based, and I cannot guarantee that I will field more than two young players. The series will give us an indication of where the team is after the series. 

The players should learn to handle the pressure of trailing behind on the score sheet. I will select the players based on performance,” said Plummer. 

In her first stint as SA coach, the Australian-born coach helped the Proteas to a fourth-place finish at the 2019 World Cup in Liverpool.

She joined the Proteas as a consultant during the last year’s Commonwealth Games, taking the reins after Dorette Badenhorst was sacked in November.

She told SABC Sport she did not have enough time, and therefore could not guarantee the Proteas a podium finish at the World Cup. 

However, the team will be boosted by 2019 Player of the Tournament Karla Pretorius, who is back after giving birth, although she will be used sparingly. 

“We will not run her into the ground, and we will allow her to develop and rediscover her form. I won’t play her every quarter,” said Plummer.

Australia have 11 World Cup titles to their name, but Plummer knows her home country better than any other coach out there.

“Without a doubt, Australia is the best in the world. They have a competitive professional league playing at the highest level. South Africa will learn a lot playing against them. Our goal here is to learn how to handle the intensity and pressure,” added Plummer.

By Charles Baloyi