South African fast bowler Anrich Nortje has set his sights on a return to the team, expressing hope of earning a call-up for the ICC Men’s T20I World Cup 2026, which will be jointly hosted by India and Sri Lanka. Following a challenging period due to injuries and time away from action, Nortje believes the past two months have provided the perfect platform to rebuild his confidence.

“Hopefully I get selected but for now it’s just to try and build, take it game by game and day by day,” Nortje was quoted as saying by ESPNcricinfo.

“I had a nice little build up starting with the CSA T20 challenge and then got the call up for the India series. I’d call it the ideal build up. From here on it’s just to try and execute and work on one or two things. It’s also so busy, so it’s just to try and keep momentum going, keep a clear head and keep focus. I’d probably call it the ideal build up just from where I was a few months ago to now,” Nortje added.

Recently, Nortje made a splendid return to competitive cricket in the SA20 league, representing Sunrisers Eastern Cape. Upon his return, Nortje delivered a devastating spell against Paarl Royals, nabbing figures of 4 for 13. 

“You’ve got to trust your body and you can’t worry about this or that. I don’t think it’s something I ever don’t trust. When something’s wrong then it’s probably too late but, in general, you have to trust your body. You have to trust whatever you have to do in order to get the ball in the right area and you’ve got to know that the work that you do is the right work. When I’m out injured, I’m just motivated to get back better and build on what I can remember. It’s probably the best time to build up when you’re not injured and you go into an off-season but there’s not really a proper off season anymore. There’s always cricket so you’ve just got to try and remember as much as you can from last season and then take it into the next one," Nortje said.