Duane Vermeulen will start at No 8 for the Springboks against France in Paris on Saturday.
It will be Vermeulen’s first Test appearance since June 2016, while Handré Pollard will wear the Bok No 10 jersey for the first time since the 2015 World Cup.
Allister Coetzee has also handed a first Test start to prop Wilco Louw, who replaces the injured Coenie Oosthuizen, while Francois Venter is at inside centre in place of Damian de Allende.
The Bok coach also made several positional changes to the match 23 that lost 38-3 to Ireland in Dublin last weekend.
With Pieter-Steph du Toit ruled out with concussion, Francois Louw moves from No 8 to openside flank, with Siya Kolisi on the blindside.
Elton Jantjies and De Allende are on the bench, where they will be joined by prop Trevor Nyakane and uncapped loose forward Dan du Preez.
‘Duane is very experienced and fits in well with our plan for Saturday,’ said Coetzee. ‘He is a great lineout and ball-carrying option to fill the void left by Pieter-Steph, while his leadership and experience will offer great support to Eben Etzebeth.
‘His presence and knowledge of the French is also a huge benefit for us. Duane has made good contributions since joining us at the beginning of the week, and I am looking forward to his combination with Siya and Francois.
‘Handré has trained exceptionally hard the past few months and he is looking forward to the opportunity to once more start in the Springbok jersey.
‘Elton has started in all 10 Tests so far this season and has made good contributions, and I am pleased with his development. However, both flyhalves need playing time to continuously work on their game management in different conditions.
‘Wilco did very well last Saturday and gained valuable experience when he came on as an early replacement for Coenie. He deserves the opportunity to start against a strong French pack of forwards.
‘Francois is also rewarded for continued good performances. He is a leader is his own right with an exceptional high work rate.’
Springboks – 15 Andries Coetzee, 14 Dillyn Leyds, 13 Jesse Kriel, 12 Francois Venter, 11 Courtnall Skosan, 10 Handré Pollard, 9 Ross Cronjé, 8 Duane Vermeulen, 7 Siya Kolisi, 6 Francois Louw, 5 Lood de Jager, 4 Eben Etzebeth, 3 Wilco Louw, 2 Malcolm Marx, 1 Beast Mtawarira.
Subs: 16 Bongi Mbonambi, 17 Steven Kitshoff, 18 Trevor Nyakane, 19 Franco Mostert, 20 Dan du Preez, 21 Rudy Paige, 22 Elton Jantjies, 23 Damian de Allende.
Photo: @Springboks/Twitter
