His elbow injury nursed, Temba Bavuma has been included in the squad to play two Tests against Sri Lanka as South Africa eye a berth in next year’s World Test Championship final. Bavuma, South Africa’s captain, hasn’t played since October 4, when he hurt himself diving to reach the crease during an ODI against Ireland in Abu Dhabi.
He has gone seven weeks without playing competitive cricket and more than three months without featuring in a Test. His last Test was against West Indies in Guyana in August. He missed the Tests in Bangladesh last month, when South Africa lifted the trophy 2-0 under Aiden Markram’s leadership.
If South Africa win both Tests against the islanders, and the two they contest at home against Pakistan in December and January, they will make the cut for the WTC final at Lord’s in June.
South Africa are currently fifth in the standings with Sri Lanka sitting on the third spot. Australia have a lead of 4.17 percentage points, and margin between the second and fifth sides is only 4.16 points.
Red-ball head coach Shukri Conrad has today announced a 14-player squad for the upcoming two-match Test series against Sri Lanka, which gets underway in Durban later this month.
Captain Temba Bavuma will lead the side after being cleared for selection following a fitness test on… pic.twitter.com/MuUhVjqb4q
— Proteas Men (@ProteasMenCSA) November 19, 2024
