Dawid Malan out to establish himself in England T20 side: "I don't have the leeway that the established members of the side do"

The 32-year-old has been imperious in T20 cricket of late and is angling for a place in the World Cup squad

• ODI Series Things to Watch
• Ngidi back for Proteas

England batsman Dawid Malan believes he can afford no slip-ups if he wants to stand a chance of being part of the team's future white-ball plans.

The Yorkshire new boy has been included in the one-day international and T20 squads for the series against South Africa this month.

With the likes of Jos Buttler and Ben Stokes rested for the ODIs and Tom Banton and James Vince omitted for the 20-over series, the matches give Malan the chance to nail down a place in both sides.

Malan has only previously played one 50-over match for England but has become a staple of the T20 side thanks to his returns in New Zealand.

He struck 208 runs at 69.33 across his four appearances, which included smashing the fastest century in England's history. Malan carried that form into the Bangladesh Premier League during which he mashed 444 runs at 49.33, and added another three-figure score to his record.

With the T20 World Cup on the horizon and the competition for places likely to be more ferocious than ever, Malan accepts he can ill-afford any slip ups.

SUBSCRIBE TO THE MAGAZINE

"One or two games every now and again has been the story of my Twenty20 career with England - it's been very sporadic with the nature of T20s on the international stage usually being short series," he said in his Sky Sports column.

"With that, I know I need to score runs - and with an average over 57 and a strike rate over 150 in my nine T20Is, I don't know what else I can do to break into the team for the T20 World Cup.

"I don't know how you can be under pressure with numbers like that, even though I know the strength of the competition for places.

"You want to know that scoring runs in international cricket can help you cement a spot or at least push those in possession and that if they get injured or lose form, it's you who takes their place.

"I feel I have to score every chance I get as I don't have the leeway that the established members of the side do. I need to churn out runs every time in order to get that leeway."

Opponents South Africa have rung the changes for the ODI series with four uncapped players named in the group, while Quinton de Kock has taken over from Faf du Plessis as captain.

^{Dawid Malan made his one and only ODI outing against Ireland in May 2019}

Du Plessis is among a handful of recognisable names rested, with Kagiso Rabada and Anrich Nortje also sitting out the three matches after their exertions in the Test series.

But despite the much-changed squad, Malan is still expecting a tough test.

"I can't speak of the depth in South African four-day cricket but having played in the Mzansi Super League I can say that there are players coming through in the white-ball stuff - the standard is good," he added.

"So even though they have rested Kagiso Rabada and Anrich Nortje for the ODIs, they still have David Miller and some other fantastic cricketers and it is going to be one hell of a challenge for us.

"Lungi Ngidi is back after injury and he is a very good bowler, having faced him a couple of times and seen how he has stood up in international cricket and in the IPL.

"He is a massive find and from South Africa's point of view to have him, Rabada and Nortje going forward is exciting. He has had to pass a fitness test, though, so hopefully, we can get on top of him!"

Subscribe to The Cricketer for exclusive content every day: The inside track on England's Test tour with George Dobell in Pakistan, award-winning analysis, breaking news and interviews and the only place for in-depth county coverage all year round. Plus: An ad-free app experience at your fingertips. Subscribe to thecricketer.com today for just £1.