JOHANNESBURG: South Africa recall mid-range batsman Ryan Rickelton and the spin duo of simon harmer And Keshav Maharaj for the second and final Test against the West Indies at The Wanderers on Wednesday.
Coach Shukri Conrad has revealed the starting XI and says he has no concerns about the form of newly installed captain Temba Bavuma, who got a pair of ducks in the first 87-Test win at Pretoria la last week.
Rickelton, 26, was a surprise absentee from Game 1 given his excellent national form which saw him score 365 runs over five innings averaging 121.66. He succeeds Keegan Petersen at number five on the batting roster.
“You want to be consistent with picks and reward performance, but you can only pick 11 players,” Conrad told reporters on Tuesday. “Ryan is definitely the one who will play an important role in the team going forward.
“Knowing the character he is, he’s someone we can build our Test team around. It’s not a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, I think he’s going to have a long career in Test.”
Wanderers are usually a wicket for tailors with pace and rebound, but of late they have slowed down and that has prompted the home side to choose both Harmer and Maharaj in place of Senuran Muthusamy and injured fast bowler Anrich Northje.
There’s also a recall for stitching up the versatile Wiaan Mulder on his pitch.
“Last year spinners came into the game here,” Conrad said. “If the game continues on the fourth and fifth days, our spinners will play a big role.
“It feels like an abrasive surface, one end will be friendlier than the other. We think the wicket will offer a lot to spinners.”
Bavuma became only the fourth player in Test history to get a pair on his debut as captain after Mark Taylor (Australia), Rashid Latif (Pakistan) and Habibul Bashar (Bangladesh), but Conrad says that there was no discussion about it.
This puts the hitter under greater pressure after he was recently dropped from the international Twenty20 squad due to his form.
“The batters have pairs. He had two good (balls), maybe one was a tactical error in the way he lined up with the bowler. We have to move on, that doesn’t doesn’t make it special or anything. There’s been no special conversation around him,” Conrad added.
Coach Shukri Conrad has revealed the starting XI and says he has no concerns about the form of newly installed captain Temba Bavuma, who got a pair of ducks in the first 87-Test win at Pretoria la last week.
Rickelton, 26, was a surprise absentee from Game 1 given his excellent national form which saw him score 365 runs over five innings averaging 121.66. He succeeds Keegan Petersen at number five on the batting roster.
“You want to be consistent with picks and reward performance, but you can only pick 11 players,” Conrad told reporters on Tuesday. “Ryan is definitely the one who will play an important role in the team going forward.
“Knowing the character he is, he’s someone we can build our Test team around. It’s not a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, I think he’s going to have a long career in Test.”
Wanderers are usually a wicket for tailors with pace and rebound, but of late they have slowed down and that has prompted the home side to choose both Harmer and Maharaj in place of Senuran Muthusamy and injured fast bowler Anrich Northje.
There’s also a recall for stitching up the versatile Wiaan Mulder on his pitch.
“Last year spinners came into the game here,” Conrad said. “If the game continues on the fourth and fifth days, our spinners will play a big role.
“It feels like an abrasive surface, one end will be friendlier than the other. We think the wicket will offer a lot to spinners.”
Bavuma became only the fourth player in Test history to get a pair on his debut as captain after Mark Taylor (Australia), Rashid Latif (Pakistan) and Habibul Bashar (Bangladesh), but Conrad says that there was no discussion about it.
This puts the hitter under greater pressure after he was recently dropped from the international Twenty20 squad due to his form.
“The batters have pairs. He had two good (balls), maybe one was a tactical error in the way he lined up with the bowler. We have to move on, that doesn’t doesn’t make it special or anything. There’s been no special conversation around him,” Conrad added.
South Africa Test XI will play West Indies: 1-Dean Elgar, 2-Aiden Markram, 3-Tony de Zorzi, 4-Temba Bavuma (captain), 5-Ryan Rickelton, 6-Heinrich Klaasen, 7-Wiaan Mulder , 8- Simon Harmer, 9-Keshav Maharaj, 10-Gerald Coetzee, 11-Kagiso Rabada.
