South Africa captain Temba Bavuma has been ruled out of the second and final Test match against India at Cape Town’s Newlands Cricket Ground.
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Left-handed batter Dean Elgar, who played a memorable match-winning 185-run knock in the first Test at Centurion’s Supersport Park, will lead the Proteas in his absence on January 1, 2024.
The right-handed batter pulled up with a hamstring strain as he chased a boundary-bound shot from star India batter Virat Kohli before lunch on the opening day, necessitating his departure from the arena for a scan.
He was spotted at the warm-ups, but not at all after that and over the second and third days of the game. The team management did not share updates about his availability.
South Africa coach Shukri Conrad, speaking about Temba Bavuma’s fitness, told media that the batter was not in the best physical state.
“Temba Bavuma is not in a great physical state,” he said. “He was ready to bat at every turn, and we kept monitoring it. When we reached where we reached, not because we felt that was enough, we felt that if we sent him out then there was a potential risk that he could aggravate the risk even further.
“We were constantly giving ourselves maximum time so we could give out the right information. If we lost wickets early, he would have walked on. With 150 runs ahead, I felt it wasn’t necessary to risk Temba [Bavuma].”
South Africa batter Temba Bavuma had only recently returned from a similar injury. He hurt his hamstring injury during the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 and played the semi-final against Australia while unfit.
Moreover, he was criticized for his tournament performance and dropped from the ODIs against India.
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