David Miller says the Proteas want fresh start in India

David Miller has played 196 games for South Africa’s men’s white-ball teams‚ but he expects a fresh start in the first T20 against India in Dharamshala on Sunday.

“It’s exciting times — a new skipper‚ new players and a lot of young‚ fresh faces‚” Miller said in the northern Indian city on Saturday.

Quinton de Kock is that captain‚ and of the squad of 14‚ Bjorn Fortuin‚ Reeza Hendricks‚ George Linde and Anrich Nortjé have never played a match as big as an international or an Indian Premier League or Champions League game in India.

Fortuin and Linde are uncapped in all three formats and Temba Bavuma and Nortjé have yet to play a T20 for South Africa.

“He’s been around for many years and he’s got an incredible cricket brain‚” Miller said at the prospect of playing under De Kock. “It’s good to be alongside him.”

The changes were forced by South Africa’s poor performance at this year’s Cricket World Cup‚ where they lost five of their eight completed games and were eliminated from the knockout rounds before the end of the league stage — their worst showing in their eight appearances at the tournament.

“What happened at the World Cup was something to learn from‚” Miller said.

“We did a few things wrong and it never went our way. But there’s a new phase in South African cricket and there’s a lot to look forward to.”

South Africa have won four of the six completed T20s they have played in India.

The first of them was in their only match in any format at Dharamshala‚ where they scored 200/3 to win with two balls to spare in the opening game of their 2015 tour — their previous visit to India.

South Africa won the T20 series 2-0 and the one-dayers 3-2‚ but crashed to a 3-0 defeat in the Tests.