Malan completed school at the age of sixteen, after which he furthered his studies at Stellenbosch University. He made his senior provincial debut for Western Province in 1957 and after completing his studies he relocated to Johannesburg and continued his playing career with Transvaal.[2]
Malan made his test debut for the Springboks in 1960 against the touring New Zealand team in the first test played on 25 June 1960 at Ellis Park in Johannesburg. Later during the 1960 test series against the All Blacks, for the third and fourth Tests, Malan was named Springbok captain. He continued to captain the Springboks on ten occasions, though not continuously.[3] He also played in twenty tour matches, scoring one try.[4]
| No. | Opponents | Results
(SA 1st) | Position | Tries | Dates | Venue |
| 1. |  New Zealand | 13–0 | Lock | | 25 Jun 1960 | Ellis Park, Johannesburg |
| 2. | New Zealand | 3–11 | Lock | | 23 Jul 1960 | Newlands, Cape Town |
| 3. | New Zealand | 11–11 | Lock (c) | | 13 Aug 1960 | Free State Stadium, Bloemfontein |
| 4. | New Zealand | 8–3 | Lock (c) | | 27 Aug 1960 | Boet Erasmus Stadium, Port Elizabeth |
| 5. |  Wales | 3–0 | Lock (c) | | 3 Dec 1960 | Cardiff Arms Park, Cardiff |
| 6. |  Ireland | 8–3 | Lock (c) | | 17 Dec 1960 | Lansdowne Road, Dublin |
| 7. |  England | 5–0 | Lock (c) | | 07 Jan 1961 | Twickenham, London |
| 8. |  Scotland | 12–5 | Lock (c) | | 21 Jan 1961 | Murrayfield, Edinburgh |
| 9. |  France | 0–0 | Lock (c) | | 18 Feb 1961 | Colombes Stadium, Paris |
| 10. |  British Lions | 3–3 | Lock | | 23 Jun 1962 | Ellis Park, Johannesburg |
| 11. |  Australia | 14–3 | Lock | | 13 Jul 1963 | Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria |
| 12. | Australia | 5–9 | Lock | | 10 Aug 1963 | Newlands, Cape Town |
| 13. | Australia | 9–11 | Lock (c) | | 24 Aug 1963 | Ellis Park, Johannesburg |
| 14. | Wales | 24–3 | Lock | | 23 May 1964 | Kings Park, Durban |
| 15. | Ireland | 6–9 | Lock (c) | | 10 Apr 1965 | Lansdowne Road, Dublin |
| 16. | Scotland | 5–8 | Lock (c) | | 17 April 1965 | Murrayfield, Edinburgh |
