Regular skipper Temba Bavuma is not part of the series due to a hamstring injury.
South Africa have confirmed pace-bowling all-rounder Wiaan Mulder as their captain for the second Test against Zimbabwe in Bulawayo as series skipper Keshav Maharaj has been ruled out due to an injury. Spinner Senuran Muthusamy has been named as Maharaj’s replacement for the second Test beginning on July 6.
A release by Cricket South Africa confirmed that Maharaj suffered a groin injury while batting during the third day of the first Test, which the Proteas won by 328 runs.
PAL
–
MPS
–
HS
–
MDS
–
WI
–
AUS
–
BSAS
–
SOST
–
BMP
–
BSP
–
BSP
–
SOST
–
BMP
–
BSAS
–
BSP
–
BSAS
–
BSAS
–
CCYMT
–
BMP
–
CCYMT
–
BMP
–
BSP
–
BSP
–
BSAS
–
CCYMT
–
BSAS
–
ENG-W
–
IND-W
–
SIN-W
–
INA-W
–
LLG
–
MUR
–
NWW
–
NK
–
LEX
–
TGS
–
TBC
–
TBC
–
MB
–
MR
–
GG
–
MR
–
LAKR
–
MINY
–
SFU
–
TSKS
–
WAF
–
SOR
–
ENGA-W
–
NZA-W
–
AUS A
–
SL-A
–
IYH
–
CBG
–
PTS
–
AMW
–
WTS
–
BMB
–
IYH
–
AMW
–
CSG
–
DID
–
DURH
–
NOT
–
SOM
–
GLAM
–
KENT
–
SUSS
–
YOR
–
WOR
–
NOR
–
LAN
–
LEI
–
BB
–
ESS
–
GLO
–
DUR-W
–
SOM-W
–
TBLZ-W
–
HAM-W
–
Mulder will be the sixth player to captain the Proteas in the last 14 Tests. The list includes Maharaj, regular skipper Temba Bavuma, Aiden Markram, former captain Dean Elgar, and Neil Brand.
“He is obviously on top of his game at the minute. He’s captained in his youth days, SA U19s. He shows some really good leadership qualities,” South Africa head coach Shukri Conrad said ahead of the match.
Bavuma was ruled out of the series due to a hamstring injury he suffered while batting on day three of the World Test Championship (WTC) 2025 Final against Australia at Lord’s.
ALSO READ:
South Africa were captained by Elgar in January 2024 by Elgar in the Cape Town Test against India.
Next month, South Africa named a second-tier team for the two Tests for the tour of New Zealand, as most of the regulars were focusing on the SA20 at home. Opener Neil Brand captained the side on his Test debut as New Zealand swept the series 2-0.
Makram took on the reins as a stand-in for the two-match Test series against Bangladesh in October last year.
Bavuma, so far, has an enviable record of captaining the Proteas in 10 Tests. He won nine of them, including the WTC final. The record makes the 35-year-old the most successful captain in history after 10 Tests.
Mulder has been in superb form in the series. He claimed 4-50 in the first innings of the first Test and then scored a fluent 147 in the second innings.
South Africa are also without several regulars such as Markram, Tristan Stubbs, Kagiso Rabada, and Marco Jansen. They are all rested for the series, which is not part of the 2025-27 WTC cycle.
Lungi Ngidi was supposed to be available for the second Test. But he has also been released by the management to facilitate more playing time for the young players.
Ngidi, along with Rabada, Markram, and Bavuma, was crucial in the win against Australia with figures of 3-38.
For more updates, follow CricXtasy on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Telegram, and YouTube.
![[WATCH] Shocking Scenes As Snake Slithers Into Ground During SL vs BAN 1st ODI](https://cricxtasy.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Snake-600x400.png)
![‘You Don’t Want To Hear From Me’ – Yashasvi Jaiswal and Ben Stokes Involved in Verbal Battle During 2nd ENG vs IND Test [WATCH]](https://cricxtasy.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Yashasvi-Jaiswal-and-Ben-Stokes-Involved-in-Verbal-Battle-During-2nd-ENG-vs-IND-Test-WATCH-600x400.png)