Malherbe had been involved in several squads since the appointment of
Heyneke Meyer as head coach in 2012 without making any appearances. An injury to
Jannie du Plessis meant he finally made his test debut on 9 November 2013 against in
Cardiff. He acquitted himself well despite facing the hugely experienced
Gethin Jenkins on the other side of the scrum. He retained his place for the following week's match against in
Edinburgh, however an injury just before half time saw him withdrawn and his tour ended prematurely. Malherbe was named in South Africa's squad for the
2019 Rugby World Cup. He also scored his first Test try in his career at his appearance off the bench on the final Springbok pool match against
Canada. South Africa went on to win the tournament, defeating
England in the final. ==Honours==