Durban - Following a three month lay-off prior to the recent T20 World Cup in Australia, England seamer Reece Topley is excited to be back fully fit and eager to make his mark on the inaugural Betway SA20 when he turns out for Durban's Super Giants.
The tall left-arm quick picked up a devastating ankle injury in England's World Cup warm-up match against Pakistan in October, a competition England went on to win, but he returns to action next week as DSG eye up their opener against the Joburg Super Kings on Wednesday, 11 January at Kingsmead.
Despite missing out on winning a World Cup, the 28 year-old, who hasn't played since October, isn't dwelling on the past.
"The World Cup was an opportunity missed for myself but I'm really happy that the guys went on to win it," Topley said.
"I had three months on the side-lines, but rehab went well and I'm back to full health. It was irritating not being able to take part in the World Cup because conditions looked fairly bowler friendly.
"With that said I'm really looking forward to 2023 because there are a lot of new challenges, new competitions to play in and I can't really do much about what happened last year."
Having played T20 cricket around the world, this is a first stop in Durban for the Englishman. Linking up with players from around the world is an exciting aspect of the global T20 circuit.
"It's good to get your feet under the table and it's nice to see how different cricket culture is from country to country.
"It's always interesting to see that dynamic and I've never been to Durban so it's a blank canvas for me and I cannot wait to feed off some of the guys’ knowledge about the place and then explore it for myself," he added.
Topley will be part of England's ODI squad when they play South Africa during the tournament break that starts on 27 January. Playing against team-mates and then joining up before parting ways again for the second portion of the SA20 will be a novel dynamic.
"It's going to be very interesting playing against some of the England guys and then playing with them against South Africa in the middle of the competition.
"Hopefully, I get the one up and can poke some fun at the batters if I get them out; but hopefully they won't hit me for many big sixes otherwise I'll never hear the end of it in the England change room!"
Durban's Super Giants begin their Betway SA20 campaign at Kingsmead Stadium on Wednesday, 11 January and tickets are available at www.ticketpros.co.za
