Sbu Nkosi will replace the injured Cheslin Kolbe in the only change to the Springboks’ starting lineup for the semi-final against Wales on Sunday.

Kolbe has been battling an ankle injury since the pool-stage win over Italy a couple of weeks ago. While he featured in the quarter-final win against Japan, a reoccurrence of the injury has ruled him out of Sunday’s clash in Yokohama.

Kolbe’s place is taken by Nkosi in a like-for-like swap on the right wing.

The rest of the team is unchanged from the one that beat Japan, with Rassie Erasmus sticking to the 6-2 split between forwards and backs on the bench.

The Springbok 23 includes 10 players who appeared in the quarter-final victory over Wales four years ago in England (23-19), and nine who are making a second semi-final appearance after losing to eventual champions New Zealand, four years ago.

The nine are Best Mtawarira, Frans Malherbe, Eben Etzebeth, Lood de Jager, Francois Louw, Duane Vermeulen, Handre Pollard, Damian de Allende and Willie le Roux. Pieter-Steph du Toit was on the bench for the quarter-final at Twickenham in 2015.

The winner will play the victor of the England-New Zealand semi-final in Yokohama on Saturday, 2 November.

Springboks – 15 Willie le Roux, 14 Sbu Nkosi, 13 Lukhanyo Am, 12 Damian de Allende, 11 Makazole Mapimpi, 10 Handre Pollard, 9 Faf de Klerk, 8 Duane Vermeulen, 7 Pieter-Steph du Toit, 6 Siya Kolisi (c), 5 Lood de Jager, 4 Eben Etzebeth, 3 Frans Malherbe, 2 Bongi Mbonambi, 1 Tendai Mtawarira.
Subs: 16 Malcolm Marx, 17 Steven Kitshoff, 18 Vincent Koch, 19 RG Snyman, 20 Franco Mostert, 21 Francois Louw, 22 Herschel Jantjies, 23 Frans Steyn.

Photo: Shaun Botterill/Getty Images