Photo Credit: Cricket South Africa
The Proteas formally kick-off their preparations for the first Test match against England next week when they play a four-day tour match against the Lions starting at The Spitfire Ground St Lawrence in Canterbury on Tuesday.
The players travelled from Bristol in the south west, to the east coast over the weekend to begin their red-ball preparations following a highly successful trip thus far.
They drew their rain-affected One-Day International (ODI) series 1-1 against the hosts, who they then beat 2-1 in a three-match T20 International (T20I) sequence. That was followed by a 2-0 win over Ireland in their two-game T20I series.
Speaking ahead of the warm-up match, Test captain Dean Elgar told the media that having players join the squad that were part of those limited-overs games was a big positive for the team.
“They’ve got a lot of confidence coming into the set-up and it’s almost like a breath of fresh air with these guys coming,” he told the media on Monday. “Knowing they’ve done so well in the last month playing here, that’s great for us. It gives us good resources, many options and info we can use to best prepare going into the series.”
Many of the players in the Test squad also have strong experience playing county cricket in England. Elgar believes this too will benefit South Africa immensely.
“I think those options are brilliant for us,” he said. “I think we’re ticking the boxes in the right nature, having guys play country cricket here now and doing pretty well in those games they’ve played. It’s a massive asset for us going into this Test series just from an experience of the conditions point of view.”
Elgar also provided an injury update regarding Kagiso Rabada, who did not feature in their most recent white-ball matches due to an ankle problem.
The skipper said: “He has bowled since we started our camp in Canterbury. Obviously with regard to the workload, I think that’s the biggest concern whether he can carry himself through a Test match with the intensity and the volume of overs in a day’s play.
“For now he’s doing all the right things. I can’t say yes or no as yet, but there still are eight or nine days before the first Test and he’s high on our list to get him fit and giving us more options for the series.”
While Rabada is on the mend, the Proteas have been significantly bolstered by the return to the Test squad of Anrich Nortje. The paceman played the last of his 12 Tests against West Indies more than a year ago.
“It’s great to have Ana back,” Elgar added. “He’s gone amiss a bit with his injuries over the last year. The way he’s bowling in the nets and the way he’s bowled in the white-ball game now is big for us.
“He brings a whole different aspect of pace to the table and in the UK if you have those kinds of assets, you need to use them.”
The three-match Test series against England begins at Lord’s Cricket Ground in London on 17 August.
Proteas Test squad against England
Dean Elgar (captain, Momentum Multiply Titans), Sarel Erwee (Hollywoodbets Dolphins), Marco Jansen (Gbets Warriors), Simon Harmer (Momentum Multiply Titans), Keshav Maharaj (Hollywoodbets Dolphins), Aiden Markram (Momentum Multiply Titans), Lungi Ngidi (Momentum Multiply Titans), Anrich Nortje (Gbets Warriors), Duanne Olivier (Imperial Lions), Keegan Petersen (Hollywoodbets Dolphins), Kagiso Rabada (Imperial Lions), Ryan Rickelton (Imperial Lions), Lutho Sipamla (Imperial Lions), Rassie van der Dussen (Imperial Lions), Kyle Verreynne (wicketkeeper, Six Gun Grill Western Province), Khaya Zondo (Hollywoodbets Dolphins), Glenton Stuurman (Gbets Warriors)
South Africa Test Tour to England Itinerary
Four-Day Tour Match
09 – 12 August
Lions vs South Africa – The Spitfire Ground St Lawrence, Canterbury
Tests
17 – 21 August
England vs South Africa – Lord’s Cricket Ground, London
25 – 29 August
England vs South Africa – Emirates Old Trafford, Manchester
08 – 12 September
England vs South Africa – Kia Oval, London
Name of Author: Cricket South Africa
Cricket South Africa (CSA) governs cricket in South Africa. Formed in 2002, it succeeded the United Cricket Board of South Africa (UCB) and became the sole governing body in 2008. CSA oversees all levels of cricket, including national teams for men and women, and is a full ICC member and SASCOC affiliate.
