Netball Proteas seek first victory against world champs Australia in October series
The SPAR Netball Proteas will be hoping to finally break their duck against world champions Australia when they tour Down Under for a challenging three-Test series in October.
The series will follow hot on the heels of another tough three-Test series for the Proteas against the Silver Ferns in New Zealand in September.
Both tours are part of the Proteas' preparations for the Commonwealth Games next year in Glasgow and the Sydney Netball World Cup in 2027.
The first match against Australia will take place at Bendigo's Red Energy Arena on Saturday, October 4.
South Africa and Australia have played each other 46 times, with Australia winning all the Test matches. However, in recent years, South Africa have narrowed the winning margin against the world's No 1 team. Much of the credit for this went to former Australian head coach Norma Plummer, who enjoyed two spells with the Proteas.
The most notable efforts by South Africa were at the Quad Series in London in 2018 where The Diamonds beat the Proteas 54-50 and the two-point loss (55-53) in the dying minutes of the ill-tempered 2019 Netball World Cup semi-final in Liverpool.
The last series between the Proteas and Australian Diamonds was played in 2023, also in Australia, which the hosts won 67-52 and 77-50. It was the first standalone Test series between the two nations Down Under in 18 years.
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