With Bavuma and Rabada being rested in the upcoming test series against India, the young player Tristan Stubbs got his maiden Test call-up.
Tristan Stubbs earns maiden Test call-up
The Men in Blues is scheduled to play in the South Africa Tour 2023 starting on December 10. India and South Africa will be playing a match T20I series, a Three-match ODI series, and a match test series.
After their side’s defeat in the World Cup semifinals against Australia, they are scheduled to play against India in a home tour. The World Cup performers Temba Bavuma and Kagiso Rabada will be rested on the white ball series. They are rested to prepare for the two-Test series later this month.
Aiden Markram will be leading the side in the T20I and ODI formats against India. Gerald Coetzee, Marco Jansen, and Lungi Ngidi will play only in the first two T20Is for the same reason.
They will be joining Bavuma and Rabada to prepare for the Test series. They will be playing in a round of domestic first-class matches between December 14-17.
On this occasion, South Africa’s test coach Shruki Conrad said, “We agreed that the Test side is the priority,” at a press conference. “We are prioritizing readiness for the Test matches given it is the start of the World Test Championship (WTC).”
South Africa will be starting the new cycle of the WTC campaign with the series against India and will be playing a two-match Test series to New Zealand to play two Tests in February next year.
David Bedingham who has played in a local match for Durham but planned to play for England and does not have an SA20 deal has been included in the playing group.
The young batter Tristan Stubbs, the South Africa A team run-scorer during their winter tour in Sri Lanka has earned his maiden call-up for the test side. The left-arm seamer Nandre Burger also joining the side for the series against India.
Conrad spoke about Heinrich Klaasen who was left out in the squad saying, “not the end of the road” for him. Ryan Rickelton was sidelined in the tour and he has fallen in the order. “The guys that have come in – Stubbs and Bedingham – are ahead of him,” Conrad said.
“I don’t think he challenges Kyle Verreynne as the wicket-keeper. At the time (that Rickelton played) there was no news on David’s availability and desire to play for South Africa and since then Stubbo has also shown so much.”
“We might see a few changes for those tours as well. We will see the return of guys who, in those conditions, can help us win those series. It’s where the global game is at. You’ve got to be quite flexible in your selections and ensure guys are nice and fresh when they are called up.”
South Africa will be playing in the 1st T20I match on December 10, at Kingsmead Cricket Ground, Durban.
