Setback for South Africa as skipper Temba Bavuma returns home ahead of CWC 2023 warm-up games
South Africa is currently facing the absence of fast bowlers Anrich Nortje and Sisanda Magala, as both have been ruled out of the entire tournament due to injuries.
South Africa faced a setback on Thursday when their ODI captain, Temba Bavuma, had to return home from India due to personal reasons just before the team’s two warm-up games for the ICC Cricket World Cup.
The Proteas have scheduled matches against Afghanistan and New Zealand for their first and second warm-up games on September 29 and October 2, respectively. According to an update on South Africa cricket’s social media platforms, Bavuma has returned to South Africa due to personal reasons.
#CWC23 TEAM UPDATE
Proteas ODI Captain Temba Bavuma will travel back home due to family reasons
Bavuma misses #CWC23 warm-up matches
Afghanistan
New ZealandMarkram will captain in his absence #BePartOfIt pic.twitter.com/iC3PwcSPrY
— Proteas Men (@ProteasMenCSA) September 28, 2023
In Bavuma’s absence, T20I captain Aiden Markram will lead the team in the two warm-up matches. However, Bavuma is expected to rejoin the team before their opening game. South Africa will kick off their World Cup campaign against Sri Lanka in New Delhi on October 7.
South Africa is currently facing the absence of fast bowlers Anrich Nortje and Sisanda Magala, as both have been ruled out of the entire tournament due to injuries. Nortje is suspected to have a stress fracture in his back, while Magala is dealing with a left knee injury.
In addition to these setbacks, Temba Bavuma, who delivered an impressive unbeaten 114 against Australia in the first ODI earlier this month, suffered a hamstring niggle. However, he managed to recover in time to play the next two games. Unfortunately, Bavuma then experienced an inner thigh muscle strain, which led to his rest from the fourth ODI as a precautionary measure. He did make a comeback for the final game of the series but unfortunately had a disappointing performance, scoring a two-ball duck.
In light of Bavuma’s absence, Reeza Hendricks may step in to open with Quinton de Kock in the warm-up matches in Thiruvananthapuram.
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