South Africa have decided to rest Jacques Kallis, Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel for the one-off Twenty20 international against India on January 9.
The match, to be played at Durban's Moses Mabhida football stadium, will be the final international appearance of fast bowler Makhaya Ntini, who announced his retirement earlier in the season.
Batsman Hashim Amla, a mainstay of the Proteas' Test and 50-over line-ups, has been named in a 12-man squad.
Amla has played just two previous T20Is, the most recent in March 2009.
Left-arm seamer Wayne Parnell is also included despite a recent bout of chicken pox.
Kallis, Steyn and Morkel are all expected to return for the five-match one-day international series which follows from January 12-23.
South Africa squad: Johan Botha (capt), Hashim Amla, AB de Villiers, JP Duminy, Colin Ingram, David Miller, Makhaya Ntini, Wayne Parnell, Robin Peterson, Graeme Smith, Rusty Theron, Lonwabo Tsotsobe
