Johannesburg, July 8 (IANS) South Africa have handed a maiden Test call-up to batter Matthew Breetzke as they announced a 16-member squad for the upcoming two-match Test series against West Indies, starting on August 7 in Trinidad and Tobago.
Breetzke impressed in last season’s domestic four-day competition with 322 runs at an average of 46, including a top score of 188. He also led South Africa A in a four-day match against India A in December.
Wicketkeeper-batter Ryan Rickelton will make his return to the red-ball setup for the first time since South Africa hosted the West Indies in March 2023.
David Bedingham, Dane Paterson, and Dane Piedt are the only members of South Africa’s improvised team that visited New Zealand in February and have been named in the squad. All-rounder Marco Jansen has been rested for the series.
The two-match Test series, which is part of the ICC World Test Championship, will be South Africa’s first in the Caribbean since June 2021, which saw them claim a 2-0 series win over the hosts.
Proteas Test head coach Shukri Conrad revealed the reason behind Jansen’s absence and also highlighted the importance of the tour.
“We have one new face in the squad, Matthew Breetzke, who is selected on the back of an excellent past season. The decision to rest Marco Jansen was taken to allow for a conditioning period aimed at ensuring optimal physical and mental well-being given the season-long workloads,” he said in a statement.
“We are looking forward to returning to Test cricket after a busy period of limited-overs cricket over the past few months. This tour is extremely important for us as we aim to improve our standing in the ICC World Test Championship. We have therefore selected our strongest possible squad and look forward to strong performances in the Caribbean.
“Half of our squad will be part of a camp to be held in Durban next week,” concluded Conrad.
South Africa Test squad: Temba Bavuma (c), David Bedingham, Matthew Breetzke, Nandre Burger, Gerald Coetzee, Tony de Zorzi, Keshav Maharaj, Aiden Markram, Wiaan Mulder, Lungi Ngidi, Dane Paterson, Dane Piedt, Kagiso Rabada, Tristan Stubbs, Ryan Rickelton, Kyle Verreynne.
–IANS
ab/bc
Disclaimer
The information contained in this website is for general information purposes only. The information is provided by TodayIndia.news and while we endeavour to keep the information up to date and correct, we make no representations or warranties of any kind, express or implied, about the completeness, accuracy, reliability, suitability or availability with respect to the website or the information, products, services, or related graphics contained on the website for any purpose. Any reliance you place on such information is therefore strictly at your own risk.
In no event will we be liable for any loss or damage including without limitation, indirect or consequential loss or damage, or any loss or damage whatsoever arising from loss of data or profits arising out of, or in connection with, the use of this website.
Through this website you are able to link to other websites which are not under the control of TodayIndia.news We have no control over the nature, content and availability of those sites. The inclusion of any links does not necessarily imply a recommendation or endorse the views expressed within them.
Every effort is made to keep the website up and running smoothly. However, TodayIndia.news takes no responsibility for, and will not be liable for, the website being temporarily unavailable due to technical issues beyond our control.
For any legal details or query please visit original source link given with news or click on Go to Source.
Our translation service aims to offer the most accurate translation possible and we rarely experience any issues with news post. However, as the translation is carried out by third part tool there is a possibility for error to cause the occasional inaccuracy. We therefore require you to accept this disclaimer before confirming any translation news with us.
If you are not willing to accept this disclaimer then we recommend reading news post in its original language.
