Bad news for South Africa, the team’s star captain Temba Bavuma is out of the Test series against Zimbabwe.
The reason is the injury he suffered in the World Test Championship (WTC) final. Keshav Maharaj will now lead the team in his place.
This series is starting on June 28, and this news is no less than a shock for the fans.
How did Bavuma get injured?
Bavuma suffered a hamstring strain while batting in the WTC final against Australia. Still, he ignored the pain and played a brilliant innings of 66 runs and won the title for South Africa.
But now the doctors have advised him to rest, and scans will have to be done to know the depth of the injury.
Bavuma himself told that he did not want to leave the field at that crucial moment, so along with Aiden Markram, he scored runs slowly and led the team to victory.
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Keshav Maharaj will be the new captain of South Africa
Keshav Maharaj will now become the new captain of South Africa and lead the team against Zimbabwe. This series will be played at Queens Sports Club in Bulawayo. The first Test will start on 28 June and the second on 6 July.
This is a big opportunity for Maharaj, as many new faces have also been included in the team. Five new players like David Bedingham, Matthew Breetzke, Dewald Brevis, Corbin Bosch and Kwena Mphaka are ready to debut.
At the same time, star players like Aiden Markram and Kagiso Rabada have been rested for this series. Fast bowler Lungi Ngidi will play only in the second Test.
Has Bavuma been injured before?
This injury is nothing new for Bavuma. This is his third hamstring injury in the last two years. He has also been injured in the 2023 ODI World Cup and the Boxing Day Test against India.
Apart from this, his elbow injury also keeps bothering him from time to time. Nevertheless, Bavuma said that if his fitness remains good, he wants to play till the 2027 ODI World Cup.
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SA Team Lineup:
Keshav Maharaj (captain), David Bedingham, Matthew Breetzke, Dewald Braves, Corbin Bosch, Tony de Zorzi, Zubair Hamza, Kwena Mphaka, Wiaan Mulder, Lungi Ngidi (only second Test), Luan-Dre Pretorius, Lesego Senokwane, Prenelan Subraiyan, Kyle Verreynne, Kodi Yusuf.
