South Africa captain Temba Bavuma had to be taken off the field after seemingly injuring his hamstring while fielding during the first day of the Boxing Day Test between South Africa and India.
Subscribe to the Wisden Cricket YouTube channel for post-match analysis, player interviews, and much more.
Virat Kohli carved the fourth ball of the 20th over from Marco Jansen through extra cover and ran two as Bavuma chased after it from mid-off. He managed to stop the ball but seemingly damaged his hamstring while running. Bavuma was then seen managing a limp. After throwing the ball back, he immediately went down in pain and eventually had to be escorted out of the park with the help of a member of the support staff as he held onto his left hamstring.
Dean Elgar, who has announced his retirement after the Test series, took over as captain after Bavuma’s injury, with the Indian score at 60-3.
For a moment, the commentators were left confused over who would take over. Initially, the suggestion was that Aiden Markram would be the stand-in skipper. However, it was later confirmed that former skipper Elgar was named the vice-captain of the series and he would be the one to take over in Bavuma’s absence.
ESPN later provided an update on Bavuma’s fitness: “The scans have revealed a left hamstring strain and he will undergo daily medical evaluations to determine his participation in the match.”
Bavuma had injured his right hamstring during the 2023 World Cup match against Afghanistan and missed two games as a result.
Earlier, Bavuma won the toss with South Africa choosing to bowl first at Centurion.
