Proteas T20 captain, Faf du Plessis, has warned New Zealand about the threat that Kagiso Rabada poses. 

The Proteas arrived in New Zealand on Monday and will play a once-off  T20I, five ODIs and three Tests before travelling to England.

In an interview with Stuff.co.nz, Du Plessis, who will captain SA in Aukland on Friday, talked up the dangerous 21-year-old speedster.

‘He’s the real deal,’ said Du Plessis.

‘He’s someone who’s going to be, injury permitting, just as good as Dale (Steyn) and Morne (Morkel).

‘He’s going to be leading South Africa’s attack for a very long time. From a captain’s perspective, he’s a guy in all formats who has the skills to do whatever is required.

‘If it is to keep the game quiet, he’s got the skill to do that; if it’s to shut the game down, his yorkers are fantastic. Bounce and pace are what he’s got, so it will be nice see what he can do in these conditions.

‘He hasn’t played in New Zealand, so this will be a nice learning opportunity for him.’

The Proteas will play a T20 warm-up match against the New Zealand XI on Tuesday, February 14, followed by the T20I on Friday 17 February.

South African T20 squad:

AB de Villiers (ODI captain), Faf du Plessis (T20I captain), Hashim Amla, Farhaan Behardien, Quinton de Kock (wicketkeeper), JP Duminy, Imran Tahir, David Miller, Chris Morris, Wayne Parnell, Dane Paterson, Andile Phehlukwayo, Dwaine Pretorius, Kagiso Rabada, Tabraiz Shamsi.

New Zealand Twenty20 squad:

Kane Williamson (captain), Corey Anderson, Trent Boult, Tom Bruce, Lockie Ferguson, Colin de Grandhomme, Martin Guptill, Colin Munro, James Neesham, Luke Ronchi, Mitchell Santner, Ish Sodhi, Tim Southee, Ben Wheeler.