Cricket South Africa (CSA) has responded to the concerns surrounding the composition of the Proteas Test team for their upcoming New Zealand tour. Reaffirming its dedication to Test cricket, CSA considers it the apex of the sport. The Proteas' squad for the New Zealand series, which coincides with CSA's domestic T20 competition, has been a focal point of discussion.
This scheduling conflict stems from the Future Tours Programme (FTP) for 2023-2027, established in 2022, prior to the determination of the SA20 league's schedule. Consequently, many of South Africa's leading players will miss the New Zealand tour to participate in the vital domestic T20 league, seen as key to CSA's financial stability.
CSA assures that this clash of schedules is an exceptional situation and does not anticipate similar conflicts in the future. Despite this, the decision has faced scrutiny, including criticism from ex-Australia captain Steve Waugh.
For the two-Test series against New Zealand in January-February, South Africa has chosen a relatively inexperienced 14-man squad, featuring seven players yet to debut in Tests. Neil Brand, an uncapped opening batsman, has been named captain, potentially becoming the second player in 50 years to lead a Test team without prior Test experience, following New Zealand's Lee Germon in 1995.
"The Board of Cricket South Africa (CSA) notes the concerns about the composition of the Test squad that will be traveling to New Zealand later this month. We reassure the fans that CSA has the utmost respect for the Test format as the pinnacle of the game we love," CSA's statement read.
CSA faced scheduling challenges when the dates for the SA20 league coincided with the Proteas' tour of New Zealand. Efforts were made to collaborate with New Zealand Cricket to reschedule the two-Test series, but due to the congested international cricket calendar and the deadline for the World Test Championship ending in April 2025, finding a new window for the matches was not possible.
Despite these scheduling conflicts, CSA remains confident in the abilities of head coach Shukri Conrad and his coaching team to prepare the selected squad for the New Zealand tour. The cricket board sees this as an opportunity to highlight South Africa's depth in cricket talent. CSA has also communicated its support and best wishes to the national team embarking on the tour.
"The dates for this tour were set when the Future Tours Programme (FTP) for 2023-2027 was finalised in 2022. The window for the SA20 had not been determined at that stage. Once it became apparent that there would be a clash, we made every effort to find another mutually suitable time-slot for this 2 Test series in consultation with New Zealand Cricket. Regrettably, the constraints imposed by the global cricket calendar rendered this impossible, as the games must be played before April 2025 as part of the World Test Championship," the statement added.
"CSA remains fully committed to international cricket and to strengthening the SA20, a tournament that was initiated by us to help grow and sustain the game," CSA concluded.
During his press conference on the eve of second Test in Cape Town, India captain Rohit Sharma also affirmed that the most challenging format of the sport should be protected and that all the big players should play Test cricket.
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