Bavuma to miss Zimbabwe tour due to a hamstring strain

Temba Bavuma, the captain of the WTC 2025 champions South Africa, will miss the upcoming Test series against Zimbabwe due to a left hamstring strain, Cricket South Africa (CSA) revealed in a media release on Friday (June 20). Keshav Maharaj will lead South Africa in the two Test matches. Bavuma sustained the injury while batting in the second innings on Day 3 of the final against Australia at Lord's. The right-handed batter will undergo further scans to determine the extent of his injury, stated CSA. Additionally, South Africa is without Aiden Markram, Kagiso Rabada, Ryan Rickelton, Tristan Stubbs, and Marco Jansen, all of whom have been rested for the series. The squad, meanwhile, includes five uncapped players - Lhuan-dre Pretorius, Lesego Senokwane, Codi Yusuf, Dewald Brevis and Prenelan Subrayen. It was a 16-member squad announced by CSA earlier this month but the updated squad, in the absence of Bavuma, has been trimmed to 15 with a replacement for the regular skipper not being named. The first Test will be played from June 28 while the second Test begins on July 6, with the Queens Sports Club, Bulawayo hosting both matches. The South Africa squad is set to depart for Bulawayo on June 24. South Africa squad : Keshav Maharaj (captain), David Bedingham, Matthew Breetzke, Dewald Brevis, Corbin Bosch, Tony de Zorzi, Zubayr Hamza, Kwena Maphaka, Wiaan Mulder, Lungi Ngidi (second Test), Lhuan-dre Pretorius, Lesego Senokwane, Prenelan Subrayen, Kyle Verreynne and Codi Yusuf