The South African magician has tasted success with his national side on multiple occasions
Who is Selvyn Davids: Ten things you should know about the South Africa Sevens back
Selvyn Davids is a mesmerising attacking player for the South Africa sevens side. He has enjoyed plenty of success in his country’s colours since leaving 15s behind.
Ten things you should know about Selvyn Davids
1. Selvyn Davids was born on 26 March 1994 in Jeffreys Bay, Eastern Cape. He played for Eastern Province Kings in his youth and made a preliminary South African Schools squad in 2012.
2. He made his senior Eastern Province Kings debut in the 2014 Vodacom Cup against Simba XV of Kenya, and scored his first try in the team’s next match against Border Bulldogs.
3. Davids signed for the Northern Free State Griffons in 2016 and featured 28 times for the club.
4. He caught the eye of national selectors after impressing at the South Africa Rugby Interprovincial Sevens in 2017.
Davids made his South Africa debut in 2017 (Getty Images)
5. Davids made his South Africa Sevens debut in April 2017, the same year that the Blitzboks won their first World Sevens Series title since 2009. However, in his first tournament in Hong Kong, Davids sustained an injury.
6. He played a greater role in 2018 as South Africa defended their crown. At that year’s Hong Kong Sevens, Davids was named in the team of the tournament.
7. Davids lit up the 2019 Canada Sevens with two contrasting, yet equally sublime, kicks in a single phase of play against Wales.
8. He was named in World Sevens Series Dream Team in 2020 as South Africa finished runners-up to New Zealand.
9. Davids scored four tries in his debut Olympics in 2021, but South Africa lost to Argentina in the quarter-finals and had to settle for fifth.
10. After winning a truncated 2021 tournament, Davids was at the centre of South Africa’s fantastic start to the 2021-22 World Sevens Series, which saw the BlitzBoks win each of the first four tournaments. In the third of those, the Malaga Sevens, he scored in the last play to snatch victory against Argentina in the final.
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