With South Africa’s regular captain, Temba Bavuma, sidelined for the opening ODI against Afghanistan, Aiden Markram has been appointed as the stand-in captain. Markram, who currently leads the South African T20I team, will take charge for the first match of the three-game ODI series on Wednesday, September 18.
The series will be hosted at the iconic Sharjah Cricket Stadium, which will celebrate its 250th ODI match during the series. The second ODI is scheduled for Friday, September 20, with the third and final game set for Sunday, September 22.
South Africa to Face Afghanistan at Historic Sharjah Cricket Stadium
In their previous encounter, South Africa defeated Afghanistan in the 2024 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup semifinal held in Trinidad. South Africa went on to become runners-up in the tournament, falling short by seven runs against India in the final at the Kensington Oval in Bridgetown, Barbados.
The South African squad sees the debut of Nqaba Peter, Andile Simelane, and Jason Smith, all receiving their first ODI call-ups. Additionally, Lungi Ngidi, who was absent from the T20I series against the West Indies last month due to a right calf injury, has returned to the team.
Following the ODI series against Afghanistan, South Africa will face Ireland in two T20Is and then engage in a three-match ODI series. Both the T20Is and ODIs will be played at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi.
On the other hand, Afghanistan recently hosted New Zealand for a one-off Test match in Greater Noida. Unfortunately, the match was abandoned without any play due to persistent rain over five days. This Test was meant to be the inaugural one at the Shaheed Vijay Singh Pathik Sports Complex in Greater Noida and ended up being the eighth Test in history to be completely abandoned without a ball bowled.
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