Proteas test coach Shukri Conrad said Temba Bavuma’s promotion to the captaincy role for the red-ball side was the “right fit” for him as the Proteas prepare to face the West Indies in a two-match series starting later this month.
Bavuma was revealed as Test skipper on Friday, succeeding Dean Elgar after a near-two-year reign.
“This was pretty much my decision; I felt that Temba and I had a really good fit,” said Conrad.
“We’ve come a long way, and he knows how I want to do things.” Dean (Elgar) will still play a huge part in our leadership group, and this doesn’t make Dean a poor captain and Temba a good one.
“I just felt it was the right fit for me going forward,” he added.
The fairly revamped 15-man squad sees the omission of several regular squad players. Notable names include Lungi Ngidi, Kyle Verreyne, and Rassie van der Dussen, who will miss the test series against the Windies.
However, Conrad also revealed that all the players left out were not injured but just didn’t make the “cut.”
“Nobody is injured; we had a full complement to select from; everybody is fit and ready to go, and this is what we’ve come up with.”
He further added his reasons for leaving out Ngidi:
“It’s quite simple for me; I think Gerald Coetzee needs a good run.” We all know the promise he holds, and now it’s time to unleash him. “It’s purely Gerald ahead of Lungi for me right now.”
CSA also announced that they were reviewing the National Selection Committee and had released Victor Mpitsang from his role as National Convenor of Selectors.
Nkwe added that the two coaches would assume the responsibility of selecting players.
“I’ve always believed that the coach has more of a say when it comes to selection,” said Nkwe
“It is going to be for an interim phase, something that we want to trail, but I purely believe the two coaches are best positioned to talk about selections.”
“I think it makes a lot of sense for them (the coaches) to take that accountability because they understand the playing philosophy and the bigger picture with South African cricket,” he concluded.
The two-match test series will begin from the 28th of February to the 12th of March in Centurion and Johannesburg.
Test squad for South Africa’s match against the West Indies:
Temba Bavuma (captain, DP World Lions), Gerald Coetzee (ITEC Knights), Tony de Zorzi (Six Gun Grill Western Province), Dean Elgar (Momentum Multiply Titans), Simon Harmer (Momentum Multiply Titans), Marco Jansen (Dafabet Warriors), Heinrich Klaasen (Momentum Multiply Titans), Keshav Maharaj (Hollywoodbets Dolphins), Aiden Markram (Momentum Multiply Titans), Wiaan Mulder (DP World Lions), Senuran Muthusamy (North West Dragons), Anrich Nortje (Dafabet Warriors), Keegan Petersen (Hollywoodbets Dolphins), Kagiso Rabada (DP World Lions), Ryan Rickelton (DP World Lions).
