Newly appointed South African captain, Temba Bavuma believes that his team possesses the quality to beat Pakistan in the ODI series despite some of their star players departing for the Indian Premier League (IPL) after the second ODI.
Bavuma said that the management and the players were aware of the situation beforehand which enabled them to mentally prepare for the series.
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“For the first two games, we have got all our best players. It’s important that we get positive results. That’s not to say we are conceding the result in the third game. We believe we have got worthy enough replacements. I don’t think it’s that disturbing and we respect the relationship between CSA and the BCCI,” he said.
Star players such as Kagiso Rabada, Quinton de Kock, David Miller, Lungi Ngidi and Anrich Nortje will depart for IPL after the second ODI and will no longer take part in the rest of the tour. According to CSA, they signed a contract with the BCCI, which allows their players to take part in the IPL despite any international commitments.
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Bavuma was recently appointed as the new limited-overs captain of South Africa, replacing wicket-keeper batsman, Quinton de Kock. CSA announced Bavuma as the new long term captain and is expected to lead the side in the upcoming T20 World Cup and 2023 ICC Cricket World Cup. Bavuma has been a regular for South Africa since 2016 but he is still establishing himself in the limited-overs side, having played only 6 ODIs and 8 T20Is.
Bavuma is confident ahead of the ODI series against Pakistan and has motivated the youngsters to perform in order to make their way into the World Cup squad. The tour starts with the first ODI on 2 April.
