Dossier of failure: Proteas' surprisingly poor T20 record at home against Aussies

The Proteas begin their three-match T20 series against the Australians in Durban on Wednesday evening as an exercise characterised by somewhat split priorities.

It's true Rob Walter and his troops need to start testing combinations and finding suitable trump cards for next year's World T20 in the Caribbean and US, but there's a 50-over World Cup in India commencing in just over a month, which could render this series an extension of the ODI series that follows next week.

Whether history plays a factor in South Africa's preparation and eventual performances is a moot point, but they boast a surprisingly poor record when it comes to T20 series against the Baggy Greens on African soil.

In fact, since their first series in 2009, the Proteas haven't won any of the last three assignments against their opponents.

News24 Sport looks back at a dossier of failure.

2009: PROTEAS WIN SERIES 2-0

Following the trauma of a lost Test series, the Proteas went into this skirmish with a refreshed squad and tried out several unknown (at the time) domestic stalwarts to make their mark.

His unbeaten 44-ball 88 was the cornerstone of the Aussies' 164/7 as the wily Robin Peterson grabbed 3/30.

Hussey's occasional off-spin then delivered handy figures of 2/21 in four as the South Africans seemed set to fall short before Albie Morkel smashed a brutal 37 off 19 and had Mark Boucher (36*) for support as the hosts surged home for a four-wicket win.

Two days later, South Africa took first strike on a two-paced Centurion surface and struggled to get going.

So, they took a punt on a debutant named Roelof van der Merwe, who managed to pull a six over point and ended up making a crucial 48 off 30.

It was the first glimpse of how the "Bulldog" would illuminate the