Lhuan-dre Pretorius, Dewald Brevis in line for Test debuts

Dewald Brevis and Lhuan-dre Pretorius took a step closer to making their Test debuts when they were named in the squad to play two matches against Zimbabwe in Bulawayo in the coming weeks. Also in the group - and also uncapped - are batter Lesego Senokwane, fast bowler Codi Yusuf, and off-spinner Prenelan Subrayen. Zubayr Hamza, meanwhile, is back in favour having last played a Test in February last year.

But the spotlight is sure to dwell on Brevis and Pretorius, who at 22 and 19 have become cult figures due to their junior and franchise exploits. Brevis scored two centuries and three 50s in six innings at the 2022 under-19 World Cup in West Indies, where his run aggregate of 507 broke Shikhar Dhawan's record. Pretorius was the leading runscorer in the 2025 SA20, in which his efforts of 97, 83 and 59 - in a dozen innings - were among the top 30 highest innings.

Not that Brevis and Pretorius are one-trick white-ball ponies. Brevis was also the second-highest run-scorer in CSA's 2024/25 first-class competition with 573 in a dozen innings, including two centuries and a pair of half-centuries. Pretorius scored 120 on his first-class debut in December 2024, and batted for 10 minutes more than five hours and faced 209 deliveries - 67.94% of them dots - for his 114 to help Northerns save the final of that competition at the Wanderers in April.

Of the squad of 15 currently in England to play the WTC final against Australia at Lord's next week, only eight - Temba Bavuma, David Bedingham, Corbin Bosch, Tony de Zorzi, Keshav Maharaj, Wiaan Mulder, Lungi Ngidi and Kyle Verreynne - are in the 16 bound for Bulawayo. Marco Jansen, Aiden Markram, Kagiso Rabada, Ryan Rickelton and Tristan Stubbs are being rested for the trip to Zimbabwe. Nandre Burger, Gerald Coetzee and Lizaad Williams, who are on their way back from injuries, will also not be there.

"Nandre has been given the all-clear by the medical team to play T20s," Shukri Conrad was quoted as saying in a CSA release. "The plan is to ease him back into the game, starting with the shortest format, and then slowly work him up to the longer formats. We'll be keeping a close eye on how he handles the workload as he builds toward playing Test cricket again.

"With Gerald, it's part of a bigger plan to help him better handle the physical demands of red-ball cricket. The idea is to give him the best chance to avoid a recurrence of the injuries that have kept him out of Test cricket since the series against Sri Lanka [in November and December]. His recent performances in T20s have been really encouraging, but the focus is on his long-term growth and ensuring he stays fit across all formats.

"Lizaad is progressing well and is currently in the final phase of his rehabilitation from his knee surgery."

Conrad told a press conference that Anrich Nortje, who has not played for South Africa since June last year because of injuries and career choices, would "more than likely" be picked for the T20I triseries involving Australia in Harare from July 14 to 26.

The Zimbabwe Tests, which do not count for WTC points, are scheduled in Queens Sports Club from June 28 to July 10.

South Africa Test squad:Temba Bavuma (capt), David Bedingham, Matthew Breetzke, Dewald Brevis, Corbin Bosch, Tony de Zorzi, Zubayr Hamza, Keshav Maharaj, Kwena Maphaka, Wiaan Mulder, Lungi Ngidi, Lhuan-dre Pretorius, Lesego Senokwane, Prenelan Subrayen, Kyle Verreynne, Codi Yusuf.