Pretorius and Brevis included in South Africa’s Test squad for Zimbabwe series

New Delhi, June 6 (IANS) Young batters Lhuan-dre Pretorius and Dewald Brevis have been included in South Africa’s Test squad for a two-match Test series against Zimbabwe, set to take place at the Queens Sports Club in Bulawayo from June 28 to July 10.

Others who have been handed a call-up to the Test team are Lesego Senokwane, Codi Yusuf, and Prenelan Subrayen. With the series against Zimbabwe not under the World Test Championship 2025-2027 cycle, Marco Jansen, Aiden Markram, Kagiso Rabada, Ryan Rickelton, and Tristan Stubbs have been rested.

At just 19, Pretorius enjoyed a breakout season in the CSA 4-Day series. He struck three hundred in five first-class games at an impressive average of 72.66, including a crucial 114 in the final that helped secure a hard-fought draw for the Titans against the Lions.

Brevis, on the other hand, amassed 573 runs in 12 innings of the same competition, including two hundreds and two fifties while averaging 47.75. Senokwane also impressed with the bat, amassing 559 runs with two centuries to his name, as he and Pretorius played for South Africa ‘A’ in the West Indies.

Right-arm seamer Yusuf, meanwhile, claimed 23 wickets at an average of 22.39, playing a pivotal role in guiding his side to a second successive appearance in the 4-Day series final. Subrayen’s form was on full display in SA ‘A’s four-day win over West Indies A, where he scored an unbeaten half-century and picked up a five-fer.

“We’ve opted to rest some players to manage their workload ahead of a busy season. We’ve been closely monitoring performances in domestic cricket, and it’s great to see players like Lhuan-dré, Lesego, and Codi breaking through. Dewald deserves a lot of credit for how he has progressed over the past 12 months.”

“He’s shown real growth and maturity in the longer format, and it’s encouraging to see him evolving into a more complete cricketer. Prenelan has earned his spot through consistent performances and offers us a lot with his all-round skills.”

“This tour provides the ideal platform to expose them to the demands of Test cricket and see how they respond. It’s also our first tour to Zimbabwe since 2014, so we’re really looking forward to heading over there later this month,” said head coach Shukri Conrad.

Batter Zubayr Hamza also earned a recall after his last Test appearance came against New Zealand in February last year, while the fast bowling trio of Nandre Burger, Gerald Coetzee, and Lizaad Williams were not considered for selection. The squad will depart for Bulawayo on June 24 from OR Tambo International Airport.

“Nandre has been given the all-clear by the medical team to play T20s. The plan is to ease him back into the game, starting with the shortest format, and then slowly work him up to the longer formats. We’ll be keeping a close eye on how he handles the workload as he builds toward playing Test cricket again.”

“With Gerald, it’s part of a bigger plan to help him better handle the physical demands of red-ball cricket. The idea is to give him the best chance to avoid a recurrence of the injuries that have kept him out of Test cricket since the tour against Sri Lanka.”

“His recent performances in T20s have been really encouraging, but the focus is on his long-term growth and ensuring he stays fit across all formats. Lizaad is progressing well and is currently in the final phase of his rehabilitation from his knee surgery,” concluded Conrad.

South Africa Test squad: Temba Bavuma (captain), David Bedingham, Matthew Breetzke, Dewald Brevis, Corbin Bosch, Tony de Zorzi, Zubayr Hamza, Keshav Maharaj, Kwena Maphaka, Wiaan Mulder, Lungi Ngidi, Lhuan-dre Pretorius, Lesego Senokwane, Prenelan Subrayen, Kyle Verreynne, Codi Yusuf.

–IANS

nr/bsk/