Fast bowler Patrick Cummins may have risen through the ranks so quickly that Australia's Twenty20 captain Cameron White is yet to see him bowl in the flesh, but the 18-year-old's pace is already quickening pulses.

White is yet to face the New South Welshman, who earned a maiden call-up for the Twenty20 and one-day international series in South Africa, but from watching him on television he knows that he has a decent prospect under his watch for the next week or so.

"It's pretty exciting. I saw him bowl in a couple of games on television. Anyone who bowls at 150 (kilometres an hour) is pretty good to watch," White said.

"I'm not a big cricket watcher on TV when I'm not playing but those kind of players keep you really interested in the game.

"I haven't played with Pat before so I'm really looking forward to seeing him in the flesh and out on the ground. He's got some really good pace."

White arrived in South Africa along with some of his teammates on Saturday ahead of a two-match T20 series, and will be joined by Cummins and his fellow Blues players when they jet in from the Champions League Twenty20 in India.

The situation is similar to last year, when Australia had two players arrive in Mohali a day or two before their first Test clash against India, although at least this time the latecomers will have some match practice in the same format as their forthcoming internationals.

"It's a good thing coming off real match time and hardened competition, rather than coming out of Australia with a bit of net preparation," said White.

"It's probably not ideal that we are coming from all over the place but at least we've been playing some matches."

One player who will arrive in peak form thanks to his participation in the Champions League is David Warner, who clobbered centuries in his last two innings for New South Wales and has a good T20 record against the Proteas.

"David has had some good success against the Proteas and he's one of many dangerous batsmen we have," White said.

"It's better coming from some hard, competitive cricket than just preparing in the nets."

With the next World Twenty20 less than a year away, Twenty20 internationals suddenly take on extra importance as teams look to find their best combinations ahead of the competition.

Australia have a number of young players in their 14-man squad, and White admitted that everything is geared towards next year's tournament in Sri Lanka.

"Every game is like gold to us," he said. "There are not many Twenty20 internationals going into that World Cup, so every one of these games is vitally important for our preparation for that tournament."

South Africa have opted to rest senior players Jacques Kallis and Dale Steyn in order to manage their workloads ahead of a busy 18 months, while new limited-overs captain AB de Villiers is injured, but Australia are certainly not expecting to have it easy.

"We've picked the best side we can and we will be looking for improvement all the time," said White.

"It won't be easy against the Proteas because they have a great team and they're in good form.

"I know they're resting a few players who they'll miss but they'll be tough to beat."