Bavuma Doubtful for SA's Test Against Bangladesh Due to Injury

Temba Bavuma's participation in South Africa’s upcoming Test series against Bangladesh, starting on October 21, is in serious doubt after he was ruled out of the third ODI against Ireland due to an elbow injury. Bavuma retired hurt during the second ODI on Friday, having scored 35 runs, and did not return to the field. The injury is to the same elbow that troubled him in 2022, which had previously sidelined him from South Africa's tour of England.

Bavuma will consult a specialist upon his return to South Africa. In his absence, Rassie van der Dussen will captain the side, with T20I captain Aiden Markram resting for this series.

This latest injury rekindles concerns over Bavuma's long-standing elbow issue from the 2022 T20 tour of India, which led to his absence from key international series. Though Bavuma returned to captain South Africa in the 2022 T20 World Cup, his team was eliminated in the group stages. He was later replaced as T20I captain but retained the leadership roles in ODI and Test cricket.

Bavuma's injury woes have been persistent. In addition to the elbow problem, he has struggled with a right hamstring niggle, which nearly kept him out of the 2023 ODI World Cup semi-final, and a left hamstring injury sustained during the Boxing Day Test against India, which sidelined him for the remainder of that series. Bavuma also missed South Africa's tour of New Zealand this February due to recovery, and his participation in the SA20 tournament limited his involvement in the current World Test Championship (WTC) cycle. So far, his only full series in the WTC cycle was the two-Test tour of the West Indies in August 2023.

South Africa has six Tests remaining in the WTC cycle, including two away against Bangladesh and four at home against Sri Lanka and Pakistan. They will need to win at least five of these matches to keep their hopes alive for the WTC final next June.

Meanwhile, South Africa’s white-ball team, already leading 2-0 in the ODI series against Ireland, will be without all-rounder Wiaan Mulder for the final match, as he has left the tour due to personal reasons. The series concludes on Monday, with the preceding T20I series having ended 1-1.