South Africa captain Temba Bavuma ruled out of first ODI against Afghanistan

South Africa's ODI captain Temba Bavuma has been sidelined for the first ODI against Afghanistan, scheduled for September 18 at Sharjah Cricket Stadium. Reports confirm that Bavuma, 34, is currently dealing with an illness, prompting his exclusion from the opening match of the series. In his absence, T20I captain Aiden Markram will assume leadership duties for the Proteas.

Bavuma's recent form in ODI cricket has raised concerns ahead of the Champions Trophy. Despite performing well in Test matches against the West Indies, he has struggled in ODIs, failing to notch a half-century in his last nine outings. His leadership during the ODI World Cup 2023 was also under scrutiny, with a modest tally of 145 runs from eight matches.

This series marks the first bilateral ODI series between South Africa and Afghanistan. The teams previously clashed in the 2015 and 2019 ODI World Cups, with South Africa emerging victorious in both encounters. Their most recent meeting was in the T20 World Cup 2024 semi-final, where Markram's side secured a comfortable win.

South Africa has opted to rest several senior players for this series, including Heinrich Klaasen, Rassie van der Dussen, Kagiso Rabada, and Anrich Nortje. The move reflects the team's strategy to evaluate potential replacements ahead of the ODI World Cup 2027.

Following the three-match ODI series against Afghanistan, South Africa will engage in a comprehensive white-ball series against Ireland. Several senior players, including Aiden Markram, will be absent from this series as well, with van der Dussen set to join the squad in Markram's stead.

South Africa Squad: Temba Bavuma (captain), Ottneil Baartman, Nandre Burger, Tony de Zorzi, Bjorn Fortuin, Reeza Hendricks, Aiden Markram, Wiaan Mulder, Lungi Ngidi, Andile Phehlukwayo, Nqaba Peter, Andile Simelane, Jason Smith, Tristan Stubbs, Kyle Verreynne, Lizaad Williams.

Afghanistan Squad: Hashmatullah Shahidi (c), Rahmat Shah (vc), Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Ikram Alikhil (wk), Abdul Malik, Riaz Hassan, Darwish Rasooli, Azmatullah Omarzai, Mohammad Nabi, Gulbadin Naib, Rashid Khan, Nangyal Kharoti, Allah Mohammad Ghazanfar, Fazal Haq Farooqi, Bilal Sami, Naveed Zadran and Farid Ahmad Malik.

ODI Series Schedule:

Wednesday, 18 September

1st ODI, Sharjah Cricket Stadium, UAE

Friday, 20 September

2nd ODI, Sharjah Cricket Stadium, UAE

Sunday, 22 September

3rd ODI, Sharjah Cricket Stadium, UAE