Proteas coach wary of tough Zimbabwe

Proteas coach, Shukri Conrad, says they expect a tough challenge against Zimbabwe in their Test series, which kicks off on Saturday.

The Proteas head into the test in Bulawayo as they return from a historical win after claiming the World Test Championship title at Lords, in London.

Conrad’s charges beat their old foe, Australia, by five wickets to end the team’s 27-year-old long ICC trophy drought.

The Proteas have not toured Zimbabwe for Test cricket since 2014.

Conrad says they are well prepared for the challenge.

Test captain, Temba Bavuma, will miss out due to the hamstring injury he picked up in the World Test Championship final victory two weeks ago.

A few senior players including Kagiso Rabada, Aiden Markram, Ryan Rickelton, Tristan Stubbs and Marco Jansen, have been rested for the series.

Spinner, Keshav Maharaj, will take over captaincy duties.

Batsman, Wiaan Mulder, says they’re excited about the test series.

Proteas Men set sights on Zimbabwe Tour 🏏🇿🇦

Our Proteas Men are ready to extend their red-ball dominance as they head to Bulawayo for an exciting Test series against Zimbabwe 💪.

Stay tuned for all updates, and don’t miss a moment of the action! 🔥#WozaNawe pic.twitter.com/2CWbNCEVle

— Proteas Men (@ProteasMenCSA) June 23, 2025

Conrad has meanwhile also named his team for the T20I Tri-Series against New Zealand and Zimbabwe, which will begins on the 14th of next month and will run until the 26th in Harare.

Rassie van der Dussen will lead the side, with Markram and several senior players rested for workload management.

The series will be used as preparation for South Africa’s preparations for the 2026 T20 World Cup.

Conrad has included some new faces to bolster the squad. Lhuan-dre Pretorius, who was the top scorer in this year’s SA20 tournament, is one of the fresh blood.

Wicketkeeper-batter, Rubin Hermann, and all-rounder, Senuran Muthusamy, are also in line to make their T20I debuts, while Corbin Bosch — already capped in ODIs and Tests — has also been included for his first appearance in T20 internationals.

Proteas T20 squad:

Rassie van der Dussen (c, Lions), Corbin Bosch (Titans), Dewald Brevis (Titans), Nandre Burger (WP), Gerald Coetzee (Titans), Reeza Hendricks (Lions), Rubin Hermann (Dragons), George Linde (WP), Kwena Maphaka (Lions), Senuran Muthusamy (Warriors), Lungi Ngidi (Titans), Nqaba Peter (Lions), Lhuan-dré Pretorius (Titans), Andile Simelane (Dolphins).